


I Never Said I Didn't Love You

by varyingdegreesofinsanity



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Altean Lance (Voltron), Galra Keith (Voltron), KeithxLance, M/M, Multi, Voltron, klance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-31
Updated: 2018-12-04
Packaged: 2019-05-16 17:28:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 24
Words: 57,925
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14815706
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/varyingdegreesofinsanity/pseuds/varyingdegreesofinsanity
Summary: Keith and Lance have a sort of turbulent relationship. Keith's bad at talking to people and Lance is bad at picking up Keith's hints. Pidge is getting sick of it, Hunk has noticed something too and Shiro's missing... again. As Lance and Keith get closer to discovering their mutual attraction, Lance discovers things about Keith he's not happy he didn't know, and Keith starts to realize just how badly he needs Lance in his life.





	1. When Space Dad Disappears... Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shiro's gone and Keith? Well... he's not taking it so well. So when Lance almost runs into him in the hall, Keith lets a little of his anger get the better of him. Lance, on the other, can only handle so much...

Lance was wandering around the castle with his hands shoved into his jean pockets. They had just gotten back from their fight, which they won, but Lance didn't feel like it was a win. Shiro was completely missing and at the moment, no one knew how to even look for him. He could tell everyone was down, including himself. Which is why he was pacing and wandering the hallways with just his thoughts to distract him.

Keith rounded the corner and nearly ran into Lance. He reeled back, anger flashing hot and sudden through his chest. “Watch it, idiot!” He snapped, glaring at Lance.

Lance jumped back from surprise and assumed a strange attacking pose until he saw that it was just Keith being a jerk. "You watch it! Your the one barreling around the corner!" Lance snapped back at Keith. That hot annoyance burning in his chest rose. It only occurred when Keith was being over emotional and angry.

Keith shoved past him. “It’s not my fault you’re in here wasting time pacing,” he said. He continued down the hall, arms folded across his chest. Lance’s voice stopped him.

"At least I'm trying to get over this by myself instead of taking out on my fellow Paladins." Lance cried out with his arms out as if he was trying too defend himself. Then he realized he probably said too much and he shoved his hands back into his pockets and turned his back. “Never mind. Forget it."

Keith whirled. "What?" he snapped. Lance shied away, but Keith approached him and grabbed the collar of his jacket, pulling him close. "What did you say?" Keith glared at him for a second longer, then shoved Lance away. "You don't understand," he said.

Lance instinctively grabbed onto Keith's wrists when he yanked on him closer and glared back at him, secretly wishing he would throw the first punch so he could beat Keith down. He was disappointed when Keith just shoved him away.

"Of course I don't understand, you quiznack. Kinda hard to when all you do is shove me around like that. If you wanna fight just throw the first punch." Lance snapped back at him, his hands balling into fists.

Keith glared at him, seething. "Throw the first punch?" he asked, his voice low. "You really want to try fighting me?" He laughed, mirthlessly. "I'll kick your ass, McClain." He stepped back, like he was going to walk away, but then turned and swung at Lance as hard as he could.

Lance was half expecting Keith to throw something and he managed to move his head but Keith caught his shoulder right when Lance dug his fist as hard as he could into Keith's stomach. He grunted in pain but smiled when he realized he hit his mark.

Keith gasped as Lance's hit caught him hard and knocked the wind out of him. He didn't let it stop him thought. He stepped around Lance and kicked out, sweeping the taller boy's legs out from underneath him. "You know what they say," Keith said. "The taller they are, the further they fall."

Lance yelled in surprise when his feet were no longer stable on the ground and started to fall. He grabbed Keith's red half jacket in desperation to hold onto something. Keith started to fall with him.

Keith landed on top of Lance with a thud, knocking the wind out of both of them. Lance grunted. “Get off me!” He snapped. Keith rolled off of him, and immediately threw another punch. Lance had pissed him off. Lance didn't have time to see him land another punch until he felt it on his chest. Angry adrenaline coursed through his veins. He grunted then rolled away before Keith could punch him again. He crouched on his feet then attacked, and started to punch Keith everywhere he could reach.

Lance crashed into Keith, sending him to the ground. He was younger, but he was taller which gave him an advantage. Keith’s head hit the ground with a sickening thunk and pain made him nauseous. He focused on not throwing up, just in time for Lance to hit him in the stomach.

It didn’t take long for Lance to realize that Keith wasn’t throwing punches and was curled in on himself a bit. He stopped. Lance was cautious in case Keith was faking it, but he sat for a moment on top of him, then rolled off.

Lance looked at Keith, too pissed to apologize but not angry enough to keep fighting. Keith coughed, trying so hard not to throw up it physically hurt. He gasped for breath, and squeezed his eyes shut. Pain was about all he could feel.

Lance realized he’d won. "Ha! Beat that Keith! Who kicked your ass?! That's right! It's Lancey Lance!” When Keith didn't respond, Lance realized he went too far. "Uhm, sorry,” he muttered.

Keith pulled himself off the floor without a word and staggered to the door, bracing himself on the wall. Lance watched as Keith started to walk away, his arm clutching his stomach. He didn't know what to do, but he felt incredibly guilty. He knew it was Keith's fault for starting it, but he still felt a twinge if guilt regardless. He finally got up and walked over. He grabbed Keith's arm and put it around his shoulders to help stabilize him.

Keith shook him off with a low growl. “Leave me alone,” He snapped.

Lance grabbed his arm again and held it tightly. "I'm just trying to help." he responded firmly.

Keith tried to shake him off again, but Lance’s grip was strong. “Just leave me alone,” Keith said again.

"Why? So you can sulk some more? I get it, that’s your thing, but I don't think that is going to help. You always complain that no one gets you. Well, try me." Lance said sternly and didn't let go of Keith. He didn't even know why he was trying to help Keith at this point, but it helped curb the guilt.

“I’m just not in the mood,” Keith said, his voice suddenly softer. He didn’t try to pull away from Lance and instead hung his head and winced.

Lance sighed, and let go. He’d tried, at least, and that helped curb the guilt."Look, I know Shiro disappearing is eating at you. We’re all worried. But we’re gonna find him somehow. But I'm sure he would hate seeing is fight like this. So, yeah, I don't know." Lance said lamely, not sure where he was going to go with it.

"Then next time don't tell me to throw the first punch," Keith said. "You know me better than that, Lance. You should've known I'd do it."

"Honestly, I was kinda hoping you would. It was stupid but I have to admit it made me feel better." Lance admitted with a weak grin.

Keith finally shuddered and puked. Lance jumped back to avoid getting it on his shoes. Keith looked like he was trying not to cry. _That was embarrassing._

Good thing Lance was used to Hunk puking almost all the time back at the Galaxy Garrison."Damn, I hit you good. Now you know how Hunk feels, minus the motion sickness." Lance said and tip toed around Keith's sick. "I think we’re even now."

Keith doubled over and squeezed his eyes shut. His throat burned and his stomach hurt and his chest ached. "Don't cry," he whispered to himself.

Keith totally looked like he was gonna cry and Lance felt his chest tighten, panic bubbling. He didn't really know what to do when a guy cried. If a girl cried he knew what to do, but he had a feeling Keith would not like that.

"Hey, uh, Keith? Maybe. . . Uh. . . " Lance was at a loss for words, which was rare.

Keith gritted his teeth and braced his hands against the floor. He felt like grief was swallowing him. He needed Shiro. He was the only family he had left… and he couldn't stand to lose him. Not again.

Lance was starting to think Keith was dealing with more than he let on as he watched him on the floor, shaking. Lance very cautiously placed a hand on Keith's shoulder.

"Hey, maybe we should get you to your room." Lance offered. He felt his chest grow warm for a moment, but he focused more on Keith.

"Leave me alone," Keith said again, this time his voice quiet and tight. He kept his eyes closed. He refused to look up or move, even though Lance's hand was still on his shoulder.

"I know the "lone wolf" is your role or whatever, but _that_ line is starting to get old." Lance replied. He bent down so Keith's arm fell over his shoulders again and he helped Keith to his feet.

"Let's at least get you to your room and then I'll decide if I wanna leave you alone or not.”

Keith rolled his eyes, but he let Lance help him up. Lance pulled Keith's arm around his shoulder again and this time Keith let him support him as they walked back to his room. Neither of them said a word.

Lance felt incredibly awkward as he half helped, half dragged Keith to his room. Probably because this was the most he had ever touched Keith that wasn't fighting. Finally, they reached the door to Keith’s room. They pushed inside and Keith braced his hand on the wall and made his way to his bed, where he sat down and stared dejectedly at the floor.

Lance had every intention of leaving Keith alone until he saw how dead Keith looked. Lance sighed, not sure what he wanted to do. He watched in awkward silence for a few minutes.

"I'm surprised you haven't told me too have you alone yet." he finally said, unsure of what else to say.

"It wouldn't make any difference," Keith muttered, not bothering to look up at him.

Lance really felt like he should leave but for some reason he didn't have the heart to do that when Keith seemed so crushed. He had seen him angry, frustrated, annoyed, you name it. But this was different. He tried to think of what make Keith happy and realized he had no clue.

"Hey, that broody look doesn't suit you. Would punching me again make you feel better? That would be better than this dark mood." Lance offered. "Just not my face. That's my selling point." he added with a small, teasing smile.

Keith felt a tiny smile twitch across his face. It disappeared as quickly as it came. He shook his head. "I don't think punching you would make me feel better," he said after a moment.

"Well, at least I know the issue isn't me, exactly." Lance replied. He figured it might be good if he at least sat somewhere near Keith. He was a little confused why he didn't want to just leave Keith to brood by himself. Maybe it was the pathetic state he was in. It made it hard to leave.

Lance walked over and sat on the floor with his back against the bed next to Keith. He was able to look at Keith's face from this angle. He still looked like he was about to cry, and it made Lance freeze up again. "Hey, that sad look doesn't fit you either. Even your stupid smug look looks better than that." Lance said

Keith tried to laugh but it came out as more of a sob than anything. "Sorry," he said. "Didn't realize I had to impress you…" he paused and gritted his teeth again, swallowing hard. "Sorry," he said again, and this time Lance could tell he meant it.

Lance felt it weird that Keith was being nice, but he liked it at least. It made the burning annoyance disappear. "Apology accepted, since I'm forgiving like that." he said with a teasing smile. He lightly pushed Keith's knee. "But seriously, you look like you’re about to cry and I don't know what to do about that.”

Keith swore under his breath. “It’s that obvious, huh?” he asked, still refusing to look at Lance. He clenched his fist on his knee.

"Yeah, it's written all over your face. I could leave and let you do your thing, but I'm actually kinda worried about you."Lance then realized what he said and panicked a bit. It definitely sounded weird when he said it to Keith.

Keith shook his head. This was beyond embarrassing. The last thing he wanted was to cry in front of Lance. But he didn’t trust his voice to work. He said nothing, gritted his teeth and clenched his fist so tight that his nails dug painfully into his palms, even through his gloves. None of it was working. He felt a tear spill onto his cheek.

Lance felt panic bubble in his chest and he didn't know what to do. His first instinct was to get out of there, but he knew he would feel like a jerk afterwards if he did. If Keith was a girl he would know exactly what to do, but he was sure Keith wouldn't like it.Then Lance saw a tear fall from Keith's cheek. He suddenly found himself sitting next to Keith on the bed and placing an arm around Keith's back. It felt weird but Keith didn't pull away.

Keith felt Lance’s arm around his shoulder and lost it. Like… complete emotional breakdown. He hadn’t realized how hard it had been to hold it in until it all exploded out of him at once.

Lance honestly didn't know if he was helping or making things worse, but he knew it would be worse if he left now. Lance kept his arm around Keith and eventually moved a little closer so Keith could lean on him if he wanted to. Even though it was really weird to see Keith cry, he felt a little good about it.

"Yeah, just let it out big guy. I think you needed this." Lance muttered softly.

Keith cried for a long time. He didn't even really know how much time had passed. But finally, it seemed no more tears would come. He was exhausted. Lance still had his hand around his shoulder and Keith unconsciously leaned into it a little.

Lance could be crazy, but he could almost feel all of the tension melt away from Keith the more he cried. After awhile, he was glad he didn't leave. He also felt weird that Keith showed a side of him he was sure no one else in the castle had seen before.

"Feel better, Keith?" he finally asked when Keith started to calm down.

Keith nodded. "Sorry," he managed, his voice quiet and rough. "I'm sorry you had to see that."

"I gotta admit it was kinda weird, but it was kinda nice too. You’re usually a jerk so it was different,” Lance said with a lighter tone of voice. "You don't seem as tense anymore though. I thought your were gonna break in half there."

"You're not any better," Keith said. "You're a jerk too." Lance laughed and shifted a little, but he didn't let go. "I just... I don't know what to do," Keith continued after a moment.

Lance stopped laughing and sighed.

"I don't know either, man. We can’t form Voltron without Shiro, but we can't give up either. I know he wouldn't want that from us."

"He's like family to me," Keith said. "We need to find him. We need him back. He wanted me to lead if anything ever happened to him but I… I can't." Keith finally met Lance's eyes. "I'm not a leader.

Lance looked at Keith, shocked.

"Wait, Shiro asked you to be the leader if something happened?! You kidding me?”

"No, I'm not," Keith said. "He told me all the time 'Keith'," he switched to a somewhat goofy impression of Shiro, "'If something happens to me, I want you to lead Voltron.' And I'd tell him that I couldn't do it and that nothing would ever happen to him and then he just... disappears out of Black? It makes no sense."

Lance chuckled at Keith's impression of Shiro. It was horrible but it broke the tension. "That was the worst Shiro voice impression I ever heard.” Then he got serious. "We know Zarcon has that voodoo witch person with him… maybe she had something to do with Shiro's disappearance?"

"I hope not..." Keith said. He took a deep breath. "Thinking about it isn't going to help anything. We need to get out there and look for him."

"I agree, but right now I think we all need some rest. You get really impatient when you’re wiped out like this. Well, you’re always impatient but it’s worse when you’re tired."

"Yeah, well..." Keith had no snarky comeback. He fell backward onto the bed and winced as pain stabbed through the back of his head. "You hit really hard, you know?" he said.

"Yeah, I know." Lance said with a snarky smile. "I'm telling you, it felt great. I might look lanky but I can pack a punch. I call it my secret weapon."

Keith cracked a smile. "Though technically it wasn't even you. The floor did all the work."

"Don't go blowing my achievements!" Lance grumbled. He was proud that he was able to beat Keith up. He’d finally showed he was better at something.

Keith shook his head. "You really think that was a fair fight?" he asked.

"I thought it was. You threw the first punch and I was the one who stood up in the end. Just… let me have that moment okay? It was the first time I was better than you at something." Lance admitted quietly.

"The first time?" Keith asked. "I don't think so. You're better than me at almost everything."

Lance twitched and stared at Keith. "What the hell? No, I'm not! I was always second to you until you washed out and disappeared.”

Keith shook his head. "Are you kidding me?" he asked. "The only thing I was better at than you was being a pilot, and they kicked me out anyways so it didn't matter."

Lance didn't know if he felt elated or disappointed. Keith's words felt like a copout.

"Who are you and what have you done with Keith?"

Keith laughed again, this time a little louder than the last. "I'm Keith, and I didn't do anything with him. I mean it. You're better at making friends than me, you're better at making jokes, at cooking, hell you can even milk cows."

"That's basic skills though. Okay, maybe milking a cow is unusual but anyone can learn that." Lance replied quickly. Normally he would bath in the praise but it felt weird coming from Keith, his competition."I do have to admit that my jokes are definitely above par though."

"Basic skills... I guess I'm lacking in the basics, then, aren't I?"

"Don't twist my words like that." Lance muttered. He hated admitting to himself that he always thought Keith was an extremely skilled pilot and fighter.

"I'm not twisting your words, Lance," Keith said. "It doesn't matter that I was the best pilot in our class. I lacked the skills to do anything but fly and argue and that got me thrown out."

Lance looked at if he was about to say something, but then he realized he didn't know what to say. He sighed. Keith pretty much admitted that he though that Lance was better than him. But it didn't feel as great as he expected it would.

———————————————————————————————————————

"Yeah I guess,” Lance muttered.

"You don't sound so happy about it," Keith noted. "I thought you were always trying to surpass me.”

"Yeah but it doesn't feel as great as I thought it would be." Lance admitted, not really looking at Keith.

"Why'd you stay with me?" Keith asked after a moment of silence. "Why didn't you leave me alone to be a baby by myself?"

"Cause I know I would feel like a jerk afterwards. As much as you bug me all the time, Paladins stick together, right? Nothing good happens when we don't work together." Lance said suddenly.

“That’s unlike you,” Keith said. “You usually just leave me to my own devices. Not that it wasn’t nice of you,” he amended quickly.

"Yeah, I know, but I know it’s something Shiro would say and he’s always right." Lance replied quickly. He didn't know why he was saying these things, but it felt right.

Keith smiled and pulled Lance close for a hug. “Thank you. It means a lot that you stayed with me.” Lance stiffened at the hug, certain he felt his cheeks grow hot. He panicked internally but eventually managed to slowly wrap his arms around Keith.

Keith hugged him for a second then shoved him away. “Now get out of my room, McClain,” he said. Lance was a little shocked again. He frowned.

"What gives? You know what, fine, whatever. It was getting stuffy in here anyways." he said, annoyed. "You better consider yourself lucky. Women line up for my hugs."

Keith looked around. “Really. I don’t see any lines anywhere. Not even Pidge will hug you.”

”We thought Pidge was a boy for a long time. That doesn't count,” Lance retorted, even though it didn't really matter in the long run.

“Correction: _You_ thought Pidge was a boy for a long time. And what about Allura?" Keith grinned. "We've always known she’s a girl and we've also always known that she doesn’t like you or your hugs."

Lance gritted his teeth. 

"Shut up." he finally said. He stood up from the bed and started to leave.

"Oh, come on! Don’t get mad! I’m only teasing," Keith said. Lance headed toward the door.

"You have the ability to tease? I thought you were only serious all the time." Lance said but he paused his walking. He folded his arms and turned to face Keith.

"Of course I have the ability to tease." Keith stood up from the bed. His head still hurt, but he ignored it. "I tease you all the time… It’s practically the only interaction you and I have had…"

"You have a harsh way of teasing, then. I thought you were serious the whole time— Wait.” Lance groaned, feeling stupid. "You mean to tell me I took you seriously this whole time and you were only kidding around?!"

Keith stopped. "Wait, now I’m confused. Which time do you mean?"

"Everything! You always were a jerk to me and put me down but all of that was just kidding around?" Lance asked loudly.

Keith laughed. "Maybe you are as big an idiot as I thought," he said. "You must really hate me, huh? If you thought I meant everything I said. Some of it I did mean. You are an idiot and you are annoying, but not all the time…”

Now Lance was pissed and embarrassed at the same time. He shoved his hands onto his pockets and turned his back to Keith.

"When you talk and act so serious all the time it is hard to tell… Whatever.”

Keith didn’t say anything, and just watched Lance. "You must really hate me," he repeated, his voice low.

“No, I don't hate you,” Lance snapped. “If I hated you we wouldn't be able to work as a team at all. I would have left. You just drive me nuts and you make no sense."

Keith started. "I make no sense?" He asked, incredulous. "I make perfect sense. You’re the one who doesn’t make sense."

"You didn't get my Voltron chant a couple months ago! I tried it on Pidge a few days ago and she got it! And how do I not make sense? I make perfect sense all the time!" Lance retorted.

"I have a hard time connecting with people, you know that!" Keith snapped, his voice loud. "The stupid chant isn’t important, and frankly, I still don’t get it. But it’s not just that!" Keith groaned. “You're infuriating."

Lance scaled back a bit as something Keith said caught his attention. 

"Is that why you’re always so irritated and impatient all the time? You don't connect with people?" Lance asked, a little more calm. The infuriating comment should have bugged him, but for some reason it didn't.

Keith swore. He hadn’t meant to let that slip. "Just forget about it!"

Lance felt like he hit a breakthrough. "That explains the lone wolf mentality,” he commented then paused for a moment. "Hey, you know. We all care about you. You _do_ know that, right?”

“Tch," Keith scoffed. "As if," he said.

Lance glared at him. " _That_ is your problem! You push away the people who actually give a damn about you. Maybe I’m not a good example but I am sure as hell that Shiro cared about you. We all do, but Shiro was better at showing it."

"Shiro was family!” Keith snarled. He gritted his teeth. He didn’t mean to refer to Shiro in the past tense but it had slipped out. He no longer felt like crying, but it was replaced with a sort of dry, solemn anger.

"Then what are we, huh? People you have to deal with? If you don't think we care about you… does that mean you don't care about us?" Lance cried.

Keith glared at the floor. "Of course I care about you guys," he said. "But that doesn’t mean you care about me. And why would you?"

"If I didn't care about you, I would have left the moment I finished beating you up!!!" Lance cried.

"You didn’t leave because you felt bad! You felt like you’d be a jerk if you left. That’s not caring about me! Thats’ caring about yourself and your conscience!"

"If I hated you I wouldn't have cared anyways! What do you want me to do? Say things like Shiro?" Lance growled and then gave up. He sighed and turned his back to Keith. "Maybe helping you out was a waste of time, especially if you’re gonna tell me I don't care anyways."

Keith nodded. "And now I’m a waste of time." He turned and sat down on the bed. "Get out of my room."

"What the hell?! Stop twisting my words like that!" Lance yelled. "You know what? It would have been easier to have just beat you up and left. It would have been easier to leave when you started your water works. I thought I could get you for once. Guess not. I guess I'm as big of an idiot you think I am." Lance then started to walk out ofKeith's room.

That made Keith mad. He stood up off the bed and walked over to the door. He hit Lance hard across the back of his head. Lance felt a force hit his head and then pain as he stumbled into the wall. Now, his boiling anger exploded.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" Lance bellowed at Keith while he steadied himself.

Keith shook his head out. Lance had a hard head, both figuratively and literally. “Don't talk to me like that," he snarled. "If you want to fight again, then let’s fight. This time you won’t beat me so easily."

"I don't want to fight! Well, maybe now I do, but not after a cheap shot like that!" Lance growled. He touched his head, and could feel a sensitive goose egg forming.

"That was a perfectly fair hit,” Keith said. "Its not my fault you’re being a bitch about it."

"You told me to leave and I was! Make up your mind! Do you want me to leave or not?" Lance decided to leave, regardless of what Keith said. He slammed his fist on the button to open the door and started to walk away.

"Fuck you, Lance!” Keith spat as the door closed between them. he stood before it, fuming for a few minutes, then marched back to his bed and laid down, shutting his eyes tight.

Lance heard Keith yell out to him and he was half tempted to go back in there and beat Keith senseless. But the door already shut and he didn't have the heart for it. "So much for trying to get close. Idiot." he muttered to himselfbefore walking back to his room to try and nurse his head.

Later, at dinner, everyone sat around the table except Keith. Pidge looked at his empty chair forlornly for a moment, then looked around. "Has anyone seen Keith?"

Lance almost cringed at the name. "Probably still sulking in his room." He muttered, picking at his food.

"I think Shiro disappearing really freaked him out." Hunk added between bites of food.

"Still... He should eat something. It’s not good for him to be by himself…" Pidge stood. “I'm gonna go look for him."

"Be careful. He's freaking aggressive right now,” Lance muttered. 

"How do you know that?" Pidge asked with a raised eyebrow. Lance took a big bite out of his food and didn't answer.

Pidge fixed him with a weird look, then headed toward Keith's room. She knocked on the door. "Keith?" There was no answer. She decided to try again and knocked on the door again. ”Hey, Keith? You need to eat.”

"Go away!" Keith yelled, still laying his bed staring at the bare wall.

Pidge spasmed a bit and looked at the door with concern. "Uh, Keith? You okay?" she asked, cautiously.

"No," was Keith's curt answer.

"Then, what's wrong? Eating something might help?" Pidge suggested, still a little cautious.

"Got anything poisonous?" Keith asked. 

Pidge raised an eyebrow. "Uh, no. You’re suddenly a little suicidal. I think you definitely need some food. Maybe some company too.”

Keith relaxed into the pillows. Then he hit the button to open the door, since he had Pidge install one by his bed. The door opened slowly. Pidge peeked into the room and saw Keith laying on his bed. Lance was right, he was sulking.

“Thanks,” She said quietly, walking into the room. "Maybe you shouldn't be cooped up in your room. Come eat with us."

“Is _Lance_ part of the us?” Keith asked.

Pidge raised an eyebrow again. "Well, yeah. Did you two fight again? Is that why Lance is in a bad mood too?"

"I don’t give a fuck about Lance's mood," Keith muttered.

" _Oh_ _boy_. This is bad. Hey, whatever happened… can you guys get over it? I know we’re all worried about Shiro but we shouldn't be fighting,” Pidge said bluntly.

"If you’re gonna lecture me, you might as well get out,” Keith said.

Pidge sighed. "Sorry, that's not what I meant. Should I just bring you some food? Probably some water too."

Keith shook his head. “I'm not really hungry," he lied.

"Well, sometimes if you’ve overworked yourself and haven't eaten in awhile, you don’t feel hungry but in reality you’re starting the process of starvation. So, I'm gonna bring some anyways and you can try to eat it when you want to,” Pidge said, fixing her glasses.

Keith protested but Pidge ignored him and disappeared out of the room. He hit the button to close the door, and locked it.

Pidge walked to the dining room and grabbed the plate that was supposed to be Keith’s. "You were right Lance,” she said. “Keith is in a really bad mood. What happened between you two?”

"I don't even know. It was weird." Lance responded.

"Weird?" Pidge asked. "In what way?"

“He was already is a shitty mood, then he punched me, so I beat him down. Then I felt bad and brought him to his room. He started crying… so I stayed to help him out. We talked a bit then he insulted me and I tried to leave. He punched me in the head and then I left. That's the short version I guess."

Pidge stared at him. That was a whirlwind from start to finish. "You beat him down? _You_ beat Keith down?"

Lance smiled. "I know right! I beat Keith for once! It was pretty amazing if I do say so myself."

Hunk swallowed his food. "I don't think it is good for the team for you two to actually fight like that though."

"I agree," Pidge said. "Keith's in a bad place right now. He’s probably easy to pick on and pick fights with, and I don’t think we should encourage it. He’s kind of self destructive..."

"I didn't do anything! He almost ran into me and then he freaked out at me! I beat him down in self defense!" Lance defended. 

"That might be the case Lance, but you sometimes say stupid things." Hunk commented.

Pidge shook her head and started toward the door. "I just hope he doesn't do anything to hurt himself," she said.

"Wait, what makes you say that?” Lance asked, suddenly a little concerned.

“You know how Keith is,” Pidge said. “He’s self destructive and it’s definitely like him to hurt himself. He’s reckless, especially when he’s upset. And I hope he doesn’t… because he’s part of the team and he’s important to me. I don’t want him hurting.”

"I tried to tell him we all cared about him but he didn't believe me." Lance said, clearly annoyed as he folded his arms.

“That's not true! We all care about him!" Hunk commented.

“You guy’s know how Keith is,” Pidge said. “He’s stubborn. It doesn’t do much good to argue with him.” She turned. “I’m gonna bring him some food. Maybe it’ll help.”

"Yeah, better you than me. I tired to help and I ended up with a nasty goose egg on my head,” Lance commented.

Pidge shook her head. “I’m smart enough to not make him mad enough to hit me. Plus I’m adorable. People don’t hit adorable things.”

Lance rolled his eyes, but he chuckled.

“Well that, and if anyone did hit you, you'd probably be able to beat them up before they knew what hit them."

Pidge laughed. “Don’t mess with me,” she said. Then she turned and started toward Keith’s room.

Upon arriving, she knocked on the door.

"Coming in,” she said. She pressed the button on the wall but the door didn't open. "Really Keith?"

Keith didn’t answer.

"Keith, please. We’re all worried about you. Let me at least give you some food." Pidge tried again.

“Leave me alone,” Keith snapped. “Go back to everyone else and have fun like you always do. Leave me out of it.”

Pidge sighed."Look Keith. We’re all freaked out that Shiro is gone, but I know he would want us to stick together. Like a team. You don't have to come eat with us, but at least let us try to help you." she said, her voice softer.

“Leave me alone!” Keith snarled, his voice rasping.

“Keith, I swear to god, I will program this door to open if you won't do it. Let me just put the food in your room." Pidge said firmly.

“I’m not hungry,” Keith said miserably. “Just leave me alone!”

Pidge frowned. "I'll leave you alone for a few hours. But I'm serious. I'll force your door open if I have to by that point. I hope you feel better soon, Keith.” she said, her voice turning softer the more she spoke. As she walked back to the dining room, she passed Lance, who was walking, back hunched and hands in pockets. She stopped him.

Lance looked at her with concern and glanced at the untouched food. "He didn't take it huh?” he asked.

“No. What did you do to him?” She demanded.

Lance held his hands up in defense. "I seriously didn't do anything. Keith attacked me first and he hit me from behind when I was walking away."

“Yeah, but why?” Pidge asked. “What did you do to piss him off so badly. He straight up screamed at me…”

Lance shrugged. "I seriously don't know! I think he’s going crazy. One moment he was fighting me, then crying on my shoulder, then he got angry at me again.” He sighed. "Maybe we should get Allura. Maybe she has some magic stuff that can help him."

“Maybe you should go talk to him. Apologize…” Pidge suggested.

Lance frowned. "For what? For trying to help him? I didn't do anything wrong."

“Look, something is wrong with him!” Pidge said. “I don’t know what, I don’t know if it’s just Shiro disappearing but… he won’t let me in. He might let you in… if not to talk at least to fight with you.”

Lance sighed. He really didn't want to see Keith again. He was already in a bad mood. "Listen, Pidge, he pummeled me twice and I don't want to risk him ruining my attractive face. I mean, I can try, but I honestly think I'll just make it worse.” He paused. He felt deep down that maybe he should try to talk to Keith again, but he was nervous to do it.

Pidge nodded at him. “I think you should try. He responds well to you… usually…” She handed him the food. “Just try to get this inside his room. Please.”

Lance almost laughed. "He responds well to me? In what alternate universe? That's about as true as saying Hunk doesn’t like to cook." Despite this, he took the tray of food and sighed. "Wanna come with me in case he decides to beat me up? You can vouch that I didn't do anything at least."

“No thanks,” Pidge grumbled. “I’d rather not get yelled at by him any more today.”

"And you think I want to?" Lance retorted back and sighed. "You don't have to say anything. I can take the brunt of everything… Hopefully. He really knows how to piss me off though." he said, feeling a little discouraged. "Maybe we should just leave the food by his door and hope that he doesn't die from starvation. He's gotta come out eventually."

“You know Keith,” Pidge said. “He’s as stubborn as he is unpredictable. He could very well starve…” Pidge sighed. “But fine. I’ll come with you.”

Lance sighed in relief. "Thanks Pidge. I owe you one. Let's see if we can get that hothead to open that door and not die." he said lightheartedly as he started to walk towards Keith's room, Pidge following behind him.

When they arrived at Keith's door, Lance knocked.

"Hey, you know, you really should eat something before you pass out. I got your favorite! Altean green goop!"

“Fuck off, Lance!” Keith shouted. “Go away. Leave me alone.” ———————————————————————————————————————

Lance looked at Pidge. "Told you.” He tried again. "Hey, I'm just trying to help man. I know you hate me and everything but. . . . I don't want you to die just ‘cause you won't eat."

“I don’t hate you,” Keith said, miserably. “Just leave me alone. I don’t want to eat.”

"Well, look at that. I don't hate you either. So, do me a solid and please open the door. I promise I'll leave you alone afterwards, okay? I'll just put the food just beyond the door and walk out. Promise." Lance responded lightheartedly. He was shocked that he wasn't annoyed at Keith. It helped that he expected Keith to still be in a sour mood.

Keith rolled over and pressed his face into the pillow, screaming as loud as he could. It didn’t help his frustration, or his mood. Then he slammed his fist into the button to open the door.

Lance was very shocked that it worked. Pidge was also surprised but she gave a smug look to Lance, who, in return, stuck his tongue out at her then smiled.

He walked into Keith's room. He looked at Keith and saw that his back was turned to him as he laid on his bed. He decided to walk closer to the bed to place the food on the nightstand.

Keith mumbled insults into the pillow. He let Lance set the food on the nightstand, though he knew full well he wouldn’t touch it.

Lance looked at him, and felt bad. They were all in a bad situation with Shiro gone, but Keith seemed to be having a meltdown over it. He glanced back and Pidge was looking just past the door. She looked at him and Keith and then back at Lance again. He sighed, and began to speak.

"Hey, uhm, listen. I'm sorry for hitting you, and fighting with you either." Lance started. He still didn't think it was his fault at all, but it was worth it ifKeith started to feel better because of it.

“It doesn’t matter,” Keith muttered into the pillows. It was unintelligible to Lance. At least he responded without yelling, Lance thought. That's a little improvement.

"Well, figured I would at least say that. Eat something, okay? If you want to look for Shiro, you need energy to do that. Come hang or train with us if you feel better." Lance continued. He folded his arms and started to back away from Keith.

Keith still felt really mad. Like… he _really_ wanted to punch Lance again. Since he felt like he had nothing to lose, he decided to do it. He rolled out of bed and hit him. Lance completely didn't expect it since Keith wasn’t really reacting and he suddenly found himself on his hands and knees from the push of Keith's punch. He crawled away in fear that Keith would hit him again. 

"See! I told you!" Lance cried out to Pidge who saw the whole thing.

Keith didn’t stop. He jumped on top of Lance, pushing him onto the floor and rolling him onto his back. Keith straddled him, his knees on either side of Lance’s pelvis, and swung at him again.

Lance immediately tried to escape but Keith was faster. He lifted his arms to his face so that Keith couldn't hit him there. He tried to get Keith off of him by knocking him over with his lower body but he was pinned down. 

Pidge watched in horror for a few seconds then grabbed her bayard and threw it, wrapping Keith's arms together and she pulled him off of Lance.

"Keith! Stop it already!" she shouted.

Keith tried not to scream as electricity coursed through him, courtesy of Pidge’s Bayard. It didn’t work. He howled in pain and staggered off of Lance. Even though Lance was in pain, he immediately got to his feet and ran away. He was beyond pissed, but only glared at Keith once the electricity stopped. He stayed by the door.

"No wonder you don't have friends if that’s what you do when people are trying to be nice to you! Stay away from me!" Lance yelled before he looked at Pidge. "Let's get out of here before he hurts anyone else. I'm gonna talk to Allura." Lance hissed at Pidge, keeping an eye on Keith.

Keith collapsed on the floor, breathing heavily. Lance turned and stormed out of the room, but Pidge stayed and looked down at Keith as he gasped for breath. Pidge cautiously watched him as Lance left the room. She was ready to defend herself if needed to, but she was really worried. Something was really wrong. Lance was probably right to talk to Allura to see if something can be done, but she couldn't come up with the will to leave.

Keith closed his eyes and pressed his forehead against the floor, the coolness of it helping him calm down a little. “Get a grip,” he growled at himself. He slammed his fist into the floor, resulting in a loud slam and a lot of pain. “Get a grip!” He screamed.

Pidge scaled back a bit towards the door, but Keith didn't stand up. She let him scream for a little bit before she spoke.

"Keith, _what is wrong_? You've never been this angry before,” she asked calmly.

“I can’t do this!” He sobbed, his voice rough and thick with emotion. He sobbed into the floor. “I can’t… I can’t do this!”

Pidge retracted her bayard but kept it out just in case. “Keith. . . ." She said softly and started to walk towards him. She knelt near him but just out of reach in case he wanted to attack. “Keith, you know, you don't have to suffer alone. We all know you’re worried about Shiro…Unless this is about more than just Shiro."

"I don’t belong here,” Keith said. "I don’t belong here. Shiro was the only one who wanted me here and now he’s gone."

"Okay, Keith, snap out of it. You know that’s not true,” Pidge said bluntly. She got a little closer and placed her hand on his shoulder. "Look, I know how it feels to loose someone close. It feels horrible and it makes you want to give up, but I know Matt and my dad are out there somewhere. Shiro is still out there. So, instead of hurting your fellow Paladins, who care about you, why don't you try and look for Shiro?" She offered.

“I can’t,” Keith said. “I don’t know how. I don’t know where I’d even start… I-“ his voice cut off in another sob and his entire body shuddered with the force of it. “I’m not meant to be here.”

Pidge sat down and and wrapped her arms around him, holding him tightly. "Well, for starters, don't attack Lance, or anyone for that matter. We are here for you whether you see it or not. We can just start searching. Maybe sit in the Black Lion and see if we can get any ideas from it."

“Tell Lance to stop presenting himself as a target,” Keith snapped. “He makes it so easy to hit him and he’s so annoying that I just… ughhhhh!!!”

Pidge sighed. "Well, I don't know what you mean by that, but it sounds like a pretty pathetic excuse. He was nervous to come back with the food, but he came anyways. He only wanted to help, Keith.” she tried to explain.

Keith glared at the floor. “I’m the worst,” he said. “I know he’s trying to help but… I don’t know how to accept it. I just feel so angry all the time. He’s the only one I feel like I can take it out on. He’s the only one who could forgive me.”

"If you need to take some aggression out, take it out on the simulators. That's what they’re meant for. Either way, I want you to feel better. I'm pretty sure Lance is going to avoid you until you apologize and prove you won't attack him."

“I know,” Keith said. He took a deep breath, finally starting to calm down. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I know it doesn’t mean anything, but I’m sorry.”

"Well, that’s definitely the right direction,” Pidge said, a little happier. "Make sure Lance hears that. I'm sure he’s freaked out. But we _will_ find Shiro. He’s the strongest and smartest person I know. He’s still alive. I can feel it." Pidge said, trying to comfort him.

Keith nodded, then pulled himself off of the floor and crawled back into his bed. He laid on his side and faced the wall.

Pidge watched as he slumped to his bed again. She sighed and got up to follow Keith closer to his bed. "Are you planning on sulking a little longer? Cause, I don't think that’s going to help you. Maybe you should go to the training room. Blow off some steam, you know?" she suggested.

Keith took a moment to answer. She was right, of course. Training would help him blow off steam. Finally, he nodded and rolled out of bed, slinking moodily to his feet. "You're right," he said.

Pidge beamed at him when he agreed. "Good plan. C'mon. I'll walk with you over to the training simulator. Maybe I'll do a little training myself too." she said.

"I can get there by myself,”Keith muttered. He gently pushed past Pidge and walked out of the room, leaving the smaller paladin staring after him. He made his way to the training room where he quickly punched in instructions for a repeating simulator then moved to stand in the middle of the room.


	2. Keith's... Destructive Tendencies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith and Lance aren't really in the mood for cooperation. Keith decides to take it out on the training simulator in the Castle of Lions. Meanwhile, Lance and Pidge have a chat.

Pidge watchedKeith leave in a huff. She sighed, but at least he was out of his room. She decided to keep an eye on him. The last thing she wanted was for him and Lance to meet and have another brawl. She quietly went to the training room and saw thatKeith was furiously fighting the simulators. She sighed in relief and decided to look for Lance.

Keith cut down training bot after training bot, hours upon hours. He didn’t tire. He was so furious and hurt… He just wanted to get all of his anger out. He slashed another bot to pieces. Then another and another. Another hour passed. Then another. And another. The passage of time meant nothing to him.

Pidge was finally able to find Lance in his room. His door was open and when she knocked and peeked in, she saw Lance nursing a bruise on his back fromKeith. "Wow, he got you good huh?" she said when he invited her in.

"Yeah, that's for sure. Did he hurt you?" Lance asked.

"Not at all" she said. "He argued with me for a little bit, said some stuff that I think you should hear from him, then went to train." She sat down on Lance's bed and put her head in her hands.

"I'm glad he didn't hurt you. I'd pummel him if he did. You don't hit adorable people,” Lance said with a teasing smile and a wink."But what do you mean by ‘some stuff I think you should hear from him’?” Lance asked.

"He told me he went after you because, and I quote, ‘He's the only one I feel like I can take it out on. He’s the only one who could forgive me." She shrugged. "It seemed important..."

Lance blinked at Pidge for a moment then shook his head. "I don't know how I feel about that honestly. I don't really feel like forgiving him at the moment. I mean, he attacked me three times today. Who the hell even does that?”

Pidge shook her head. "I don’t expect you to just get over it. But I’m saying that he trusts you to understand… I don’t know."

Lance moved funny and looked at Pidge in shock. "You kidding me? I think he basically said I'm easy to beat up. That sounds more like the words of a bully. Even though I finally beat him in a fight too.”

“No, I think he meant… look, I don’t know… I think he’d be better at explaining it…” Pidge shook her head. “Give him space for a little while. Both of you need to cool off. But I think you should check on him… soonish…”

Lance groaned."I hate it when you’re right. But yeah, I'm gonna give him some space first. And I'm not apologizing for something that isn't my fault again." Lance added.

Keith slashed through another bot, trying to catch his breath. He couldn’t. His chest was burning. Another training bot dropped into the arena.Keith couldn’t tell how long he’d been there but he knew it had to be a few hours. He gasped for breath and attacked the bot, but he was slow and the bot hit him and sent him flying into the wall.

After a few minutes of talking, Pidge and Lance decided to go find Hunk and update him on what happened. They found Hunk in the kitchen. They talked about what happened and soon started talking about what they could do to helpKeith. A few hours passed by and Pidge nudged Lance.

"Go check onKeith. I think he’s still in the training room. Just make sure he isn't overdoing himself." 

"Why me?!" Lance asked in surprise.

Keith hit the wall hard and collapsed onto the floor. Wincing, he pulled himself to his feet and moved back into a fighting stance. The bot advanced and swung.Keith blocked, but then a second bot dropped into the arena.

After a few minutes, Pidge and Hunk managed to get Lance out of the dining hall, telling him to just check ifKeith is okay. Lance groaned in protest but he finally started going to the training room. He reluctantly opened the door and sawKeith laboring with two bots.

The sound of door startledKeith out of his concentration. The two training bots hit him at the same time, and this time he crashed into the wall with a crack and hit the floor, stars flashing across his vision. He moved to stand but one of the bots smacked him across the head with its spear and sent him right back to the floor.

Lance watched in horror as the bots continued to attackKeith. He grabbed his Bayard and attacked both of them so they disappeared with a weird yell. Before more could appear, Lance grabbed the controls and stopped the training simulation altogether. 

Lance sighed and looked atKeith, who was still on the ground and looked beat up. 

" Keith?" he said with concern.

Keith was panting, trying to think through the pain. His head felt like it was splitting open. His vision cleared and he saw Lance holding a hand out to him. He took it and Lance hauled him to his feet. He leaned heavily against the wall. “Thanks,” he said.

Lance kept one of his arms aroundKeith's waist just in case he fell.

"Normally, this would be a moment where I gloat about how I saved your life and tell you that you need to be more careful, but I'm sure that's not what you want right now.Does anything feel swollen?”

Keith wiped blood off of his face, but his nose was gushing blood. He took a deep breath. “Lance, I’m sorry,” he said. “I’m sorry for everything. It was...” he winced. “…Totally un-called for.”

Lance started to panic when he saw so much blood flowing from his nose. Lance started to encourageKeith to start walking.

"Apologies later. We need to get you cleaned up pronto. Can you walk or should I carry you?"

“Carry me?”Keith asked. “You want to carry me? After I tried to kill you?” He pushed off the wall and tried to take a step, but he stumbled and crashed to the floor.

"Yeah, you are definitely being carried. As long as you don't try to attack me, we’ll forget what happened today for now." Lance bent down and gotKeith to his feet. Then, he crouched down in front of him. 

"Get on my back." Lance instructed.

Keith stared at him uncomprehendingly. He didn’t want to admit that he’d thought Lance was going to swing him up into his arms and carry him that way. “I don’t think I can hold on,” he said quietly.

"Got a better idea then?" Lance asked. Piggy back rides were usually the easiest way to carry someone injured around from what he noticed.

“I just don’t think I can hold on,”Keith said. “Plus, I’ll bleed all over your jacket…” He stared at the floor where blood started to pepper it. He felt hot wet blood seeping into his eyebrow too.

"I don't really care about my jacket. But if you don't think you can hold on I could carry you princess style I guess,” Lance suggested.

Keith flinched. “What?!” He asked.

"Unless you have a better idea. Just let me carry you." 

BeforeKeith could really say anything, Lance stood up and tried to pick him up. It wasn't very graceful but he was able to get a good hold on him.Keith gasped in surprise as Lance scooped him off of the floor. He instinctively wrapped his arms around Lance’s neck.

Lance chuckled. "Now you can hold onto something. Lean back so the blood flow will stop,” he said, still chuckling fromKeith's priceless expression. He started to walk. "You know, this isn’t my first time carrying someone like this. I’ve got you, you can relax."

Keith did not relax. He loosened his grip around Lance’s neck a little because he didn’t want to hurt him any more than he already had. “Lance...”

"Hmm?" Lance asked, trying to hurry as fast as he could so he could getKeith to the infirmary.

Keith squirmed a little. “Lance, just… hold on for a second!”

Lance stopped. "You are dying! What is it?"

“I’m not dying,”Keith scoffed. “Look, man… I’m sorry. I don’t know why I…” he took a deep breath. How the hell was he supposed to apologize for what he did?

Lance smiled. 

"As long as you don't do it again, forget it ever happened okay? But you’re becoming a pool of blood in my arms and if we don't stop it you’re gonna pass out,” Lance said softly and kept walking.

Keith struggled away from Lance and dropped to the floor. He pulled himself up and leaned against the wall. He ran his hands through his hair, lightly tugging on it. “You don’t understand,” he said. “I hurt you… I… lost all self control and just… went at you!” He wiped blood away from his nose again. Why wouldn’t it stop bleeding?!

Lance lost grip ofKeith and jumped forward to hold onto him just in case he fell again.

“Your nose won’t stop bleeding,” he said, notingKeith’s frustration, “because you won't stop moving. Having a full apology given to me sounds heavenly but you are seriously loosing a lot of blood." Lance said

Keith shook his head. “I’m fine,” he said. “I’m sorry, Lance. I don’t know what happened. I don’t…” deep breath. “I just hope you can forgive me eventually. Voltron can’t form without trust…”

Lance was still holding ontoKeith's arm but also letting him lean on the wall.

"Seriously, forget about it. Just don't do it again. I just hope maybe we can stop fighting as much, but I don't think that will be too hard now,” he said seriously.

“How could you say that?”Keith asked. “You… the reason I never had any friends was because I… I’m afraid people are going to leave me… so I figure it’s better to just… not get attached. Burn bridges before they’re even built and I…” he wiped blood away again. He could feel it dripping down his face too; he was starting to feel a little light headed.

"Well, I don't know what kind of shitty friends you had but we Paladins stick together. Not just a comrades but as friends and family too. We trust you… Maybe put a little faith in us too,” Lance said. He realizedKeith was wobbling again and turned and put both hands on each ofKeith's arm to steady him.

“I have a hard time connecting with people,”Keith said, his voice low. “You know that… I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have attacked you. I don’t know what…” he winced.

"Well, good thing you have a friend that can show you the ropes. I really hope you’re not being sentimental because you are loosing blood. I kinda like it,” Lance said, pullingKeith’s arm around his shoulders.

“We're almost to the infirmary. You can talk more like that once you lay down,” he encouraged.

Keith didn’t want to go the infirmary, but he didn’t want to fight with Lance any more today. He started walking toward the infirmary, but he was unsteady on his feet and stumbled, staggering against Lance.

Lance held onto him as best as he could and even slipped an arm around his waist and pulled him closer soKeith would be less likely to fall. They only walked for a few quiet minutes before they got to the infirmary. Lance helpedKeith onto the bed.

"Okay, just relax for now. I'm gonna get Pidge or Allura to get this to work,” Lance said.

Keith grabbed onto Lance’s sleeve as the taller boy turned to leave. Lance looked down at him, his eyebrows cocked questioningly. “Thanks,” Keith said. “You… saved me back there…”

Lance relaxed a bit into a cocky smile and replied, "I like being the hero. I also couldn't let my friend get pummeled like that."

Keith didn't let go of Lance's sleeve and Lance didn't try to leave.

Keith stared at him for a second then suddenly felt his cheeks heat up. He tore his gaze away from Lance and released his jacket. He stared at his hands. “Don’t get a big head,” he said. “I can still kick your ass.”

Lance stared atKeith for a moment, shocked when he sawKeith's cheeks turn pink suddenly. He shook his head and smiled smugly.

"I don't know. We know now that I can kick yours just as hard. I'll be right back.” He moved to the doorway and looked back atKeith. "Don't you dare move." Then left.

Keith stared after him. _What the hell just happened?_ he thought. He looked around the room, but didn’t get up and leave. He didn’t know what to do. After about five minutes, Lance came back with Pidge. He’d already explained what happened toKeith before they got there, so Pidge wasn’t surprised to seeKeith covered in blood.

"Well, good thing it's just a nose bleed,” she said as she lookedKeith over. “Let's do a body scan just in case."

Lance looked atKeith, still wondering about the blush he saw on Keith's cheeks. He had told himself it was just because of the loss of blood.

Keith’s sleeves were soaked in blood from constantly wiping it off of his nose and the nasty cut in his hair from the training bot’s spear. He didn’t meet Lance’s eyes when the taller boy returned. Pidge typed in some things in the computer and a light scannedKeith's body. A moment later, Pidge had her results.

"Looks like you have a cut on your head and a few cracked ribs but nothing deadly. Let's get that fixed up,” she said. She typed a few more things and light started focusing on the injured places onKeith's body. Lance kept staring at him, wondering why he was avoiding his gaze.Keith closed his eyes as Pidge worked. When she finished, she gave Lance a meaningful glance and disappeared from the room. Lance looked after her in confusion but she had already left the room and shut the door. Lance turned his focus toKeith. "Feel better?” he asked. “You look better.”

Keith didn’t look at him. “Well my nose finally stopped bleeding,” he said. “So I guess that’s something...”

"Well, now that you're all cleaned up, I'm ready for that full detailed apology." Lance said with a cocky smile.

Keith chuckled a little. “I mean it,” he said. “You saved my ass in there. Those bots weren’t stopping. If that had gone on much longer, I think one of them might’ve bashed my brains in.”

Lance looked at him, concerned. "I think there’s a protocol… When you stop moving, it stops the program. Did you turn that off or something?”

Keith avoided looking at him. “I… might’ve…” Lance frowned and walked over, sitting next to him.

"The hell, man? You trying to kill yourself or are you a glutton for pain?" Lance asked.

“I didn’t want to give myself the option of giving up,”Keith confessed. “I needed to clear my head, and so I…” he shrugged.

"You are fucking insane. But…I can get that at the same time. I wonder if Pidge is a wizard or something, cause she was the one that forced me to check on you,” Lance admitted.

Keith tried not to let that bother him. _Forced_ … he glared at the floor. “Yeah, it was a stupid move, I know.”

Lance smiled, likingKeith a lot more when he wasn't hostile, and placed an arm around his shoulders. "I'm really glad you’re not dead. You got me really worried for a moment.”

Keith tensed as Lance touched him. He wasn’t expecting it. He finally turned to look at Lance and found his face inches away.

Lance froze for a moment, feeling a weird spark whenKeith’s face suddenly moved closer. After a moment, Lance scrambled back a bit.

Keith slunk away from Lance’s touch and blinked, trying not to blush. He cleared his throat. “Sorry,” he said. “I didn’t want to worry anyone. After what I did… I… I guess I didn’t really expect anyone to care…”

Now that Lance had calmed down, he realized there was a lot of heat on his cheeks and he prayed thatKeith didn't see it. He was tempted to leave, feeling suddenly nervous, butKeith's words made him stay. "Well, surprise. We do care. A lot. So… how about you trust us a little more? Or at least trust me.”

“I do trust you,”Keith said. “I’m not good at showing it but… I know I tease you and stuff but… I do trust you. You’re smart and a good fighter.”

Lance felt his chest get warm fromKeith's compliments. He smiled at him smugly. "I could listen you talk like this all day long.”

Keith scoffed. “You know, if you react like that every time I say anything nice I might stop doing it,” he said, slyly.

"The only reason I'm reacting like this is because I never hear it from you,” Lance retorted, grinning.

Keith glared at him. “You’re blushing,” he noted with surprise. Lance’s cheeks had taken on a bright pink flush.Keith couldn’t help but think it suited him.

Lance stiffened and then looked away. His embarrassment only made his cheeks darker.

“No, I'm not!" Lance retorted back.

Keith laughed. “You are totally blushing,” he said. He reached out and gently took Lance’s chin, turning his head to look at him. Lance flinched at his touch andKeith quickly drew his hand back.

Now Lance was really freaking out as his blood rushed and the blush darkened a little more. "Shut up,” he said weakly as he tried to figure out a way to calm his blush.

Keith looked down, a little hurt. “Okay,” he said. “I’m only teasing…”

Lance felt a little guilty when he heard that.

“Sorry… I guess I'm just embarrassed." Lance said, trying to cover up that he was still flustered.

“Because I’m complimenting you?”Keith asked. “That’s a stupid thing to be embarrassed by. I’m just telling the truth.”

"No it's not that. I like that. Just forget it. Let's talk about something else." Lance still felt that desire to run away but he still stayed, excited that he andKeith were talking like normal friends.

Keith fixed him with a strange look. “Why are you looking at me like that?” he asked after a moment.

Lance raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?"His heart was beating a little harder than usual, but he convinced himself it was only becauseKeith got too close to him.

“You’re staring at me,”Keith said.

Lance cursed thatKeith kept saying stuff that made his cheeks stay pink. He immediately looked away. "You were talking to me so I looked at you. That's not staring,” he grumbled.

Keith snickered. “If you say so,” he said. He reached up to move his hair out of his face, at the same time Lance reached out instinctually to do the same. Lance didn't even really realize what he was doing until it was too late. In a state of panic, Lance mind defaulted when he was flustered.

He smiled seductively.

"Sorry, I just wanted to see your pretty face,” he said sweetly.

Then he froze, and ran away.


	3. Tangible Awkward

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now that Lance has thoroughly embarrassed himself in front of Keith, he refuses to even look his way. Pidge and Hunk, however, are thinking a little time together might help them work some things out. "It's for your own good, Lance."

Keith stared after Lance, awestruck and totally confused. “Umm…” he stared at the door. “What Just…?” He looked around. “Umm…”

Lance didn't stop running until he got to his room. He slammed his palm on the button to close and lock the door. Once he did so, he leaned against the door. He slid down as his fluttering heart pounded against his chest.

Keith didn’t know what to do. He stared at the ceiling for a really long time until he finally couldn’t stand it anymore. “WHAT?!” he yelled. He rolled out of bed and winced, trying to ignore the pain, and he started toward Lance’s room.

Lance finally was able to calm down a bit but he still felt completely flustered.

"Get it together Lance. You said you wouldn't do this again,” Lance muttered to himself.

Keith knocked on Lance’s door, leaning against it. “Lance!” He called.

Lance stiffened and began to panic. However, he didn't say anything or move. He hopedKeith would go away.

Keith knocked again. “Lance? Come on, are you in there?” He listened but there was no reply. He leaned against the wall. “Damn it,” he muttered. He buried his head in his hands.

Lance was conflicted whether or not he should answer. He was thoroughly embarrassed. 

HearingKeith in minor distress made him speak.

"What is it,Keith?”

Keith jumped. “Lance, open the door I need to talk to you.”

“Uh… I'm a little busy but you can talk though the door…" Lance said, not able to come up with a good excuse.

Keith glared at the door for a minute. “Busy my ass,” he snapped. He groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose. “You know what? Nevermind. Forget about it.”

"Can we forget that happened?" Lance spoke quickly through the door.

Keith stood up and faced the door. "Forget what happened?" he asked, his voice venomous.

"Yeah, forget it happened." Lance said a little more firm. "That's why you wanted to talk right?"

Keith gritted his teeth and glared daggers at the door. Then he kicked the door hard before turning and sulking down the hall. Lance yelped at the shudder of the door. He stayed quiet as he heardKeith walk away. Lance grumbled to himself. "Good job Lance. Way to mess it up."

Keith made his way to his room and laid down on the floor, staring up at the ceiling. He couldn’t really understand why his chest felt so tight.

A couple days passed and Lance was still embarrassed about his weird actions. However, he couldn't stop thinking about the hugKeith gave him and how close their faces were. The compliments also warmed his heart. However, he hated being aroundKeith because he could feel his cheeks flush when they made eye contact.Keith was pissed. Every time he passed Lance he’d feel his heart jump and it was always followed by a sinking feeling and after that, anger.

Pidge and Hunk started to notice something was off. They weren’t fighting but they weren’t talking either. Finally, after a few days, Pidge dragged Hunk to Lance's room for an intervention. Pidge sat down on one side of Lance, Hunk on the other and the two of them looked at him expectantly.

Lance looked at both of them, really confused. "Uh, hi guys. What's going on?" he asked slowly.

"What's going on with you and Keith?" Pidge asked.

Lance perked up in surprise. He tried to play it cool. "We aren’t fighting so there’s no problem right?"

"You are definitely fighting," Hunk said. "Just because you're not throwing punches doesn't mean you're not fighting…"

Lance tried to smile and play it off like it wasn't a big deal. "You knowKeith. He's still bent out of shape because of Shiro. I think he's just dealing with it right now."

Pidge glared at him. “He’s not too bad around anyone else. But as soon as you come into the room…” she shook her head. “I know you guys fought the other day but… we’re a team. Isn’t it time we start acting like it?”

"Are you the team mom now?" Lance sighed. "Look, maybe Keith is working something out that has to do with me. I'm just leaving him alone.”

”Maybe you should go talk to him." Hunk suggested.

Pidge nodded in agreement. "You guys need to work this out. He responds best to you, Lance. Whether you like it or not."

"You mean he reacts the most around me. That's not exactly ‘best’.” Lance said with finger quotes.

Pidge looked at Lance with suspicion. “You've been acting weird aroundKeith too, now that I think about it."

Lance flushed. "No I haven't!" he said, his voice jumping an octave. "And if I have it's only because I'm a little freaked out he's gonna go crazy-" Lance waved his arms around for effect, "-and try to kill me again!"

Hunk looked at Lance. "I mean, to be fair,Keith did go a little crazy, but you get all timid and quiet when he comes in the room. You are never quiet." 

Lance looked at Hunk with flailing arms. "No I don't!"

Pidge looked like she was trying not to laugh. "Just go talk to him," she said after gaining control over herself again. "It won't hurt."

Lance sighed as the embarrassment bubbled. "Why am I always the one who has to talk to him?" he complained.

"Because you're the only one he ever listens to," Pidge said, grinning as Lance stood.

"Since when has he actually listened to me?!" he asked, pointing vigorously to himself.

"Should I carry him Pidge?" Hunk asked with a sly smile.

Pidge met Hunk's eyes and smiled mischievously. Then she nodded. Hunk swept forward and scooped Lance into his arms with a loud, "SORRY LANCE ITS FOR THE GOOD OF THE TEAM!" and started running towardKeith's room. Lance cried out and tried to squirm his way out of Hunk's arms.

"What the hell, guys?! Let go of me! Don't you dare!" he yelled.

"Sorry Lance. We tried to talk toKeith and he already said he only wanted to talk to you,” Pidge said with an amused smile.

Hunk set Lance on the floor in front ofKeith's room and held him there while Pidge knocked on the door. "What do you want?”Keith yelled.

"Lance is here to talk to you!" Hunk said.

Lance was squirming trying to escape when the door opened suddenly. Lance stiffened and Hunk shoved him into the room. 

"Have fun talking, you two!" Pidge said mischievously as the door closed. Lance was frozen as he slowly looked over to Keith.


	4. Something Seriously Wrong

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now that Pidge and Hunk have forced Keith and Lance to talk, Lance notices something extremely off about Keith...

Keith was sitting on his bed, his legs crossed. His jacket was hanging on the wall and he had a tiny smirk on his face. “Lance,” he said with a small nod. He finished lacing his boots up.

Lance spasmed and backed a little too the wall. He laughed nervously and tried to act cool.

“Hey,Keith! Old buddy, old pal. Uhm, yeah, how's it going?” He stammered as he tried to look for a way out.

Keith watched him for a moment, looking thoroughly amused. Then he stood up and stretched, raising his arms over his head. His shirt lifted a little and Lance caught a glimpse of bare skin. Lance was still panicking. He really hopedKeith didn't see him glance at his torso and that his cheeks didn't turn pink.

"Yeah, I don't know what Pidge and Hunk are doing but you’re obviously busy so I'll just leave you alone. If you open the door then I'll just be on my way." Lance tried to sound normal and causal but it sounded forced as his words were punctuated with nervous chuckles.

Keith looked amused. "You're blushing," he noted, his voice low and teasing. He grabbed the bottom of his shirt and lifted it over his head, exposing his chest. He tossed the shirt to the side and turned his back to Lance, fishing around for a clean one. Lance stared for just a moment then looked away. Now he was completely embarrassed and wanted to run away.

"Yeah yeah, whatever. Unless you want to say something, can I leave? I was in the middle of something." It was a lie.

Keith stopped halfway through pulling his new shirt on over his head and looked at Lance. "You came to me," he said, arching an eyebrow.

"Did you not see? I was forced to come here by Hunk and Pidge! They want us to talk but I don't know why." Lance said, annoyed and doing his best not to look at Keith.

Keith gave Lance a once over. "You ready to explain to me what's going on?" he asked.

Lance glanced atKeith. “Explain what? I thought we were good now." he said, trying to avoid the question.

"Explain what you did in the infirmary,”Keith said, sweeping his hair out of his face and pulling his shirt down over his abdomen.

Lance froze, then folded his arms. “I thought I told you to forget about it,” he grumbled.

“Yeah,"Keith said. "But I can't really… forget that."

Lance's cheeks flushed from pure embarrassment. "I don't really want to talk about it." he said stubbornly.

Keith stepped forward so fast Lance didn't really know what was happening untilKeith grabbed his jacket collar. He pulled Lance close and glared into his eyes. "I don't care if you don't want to talk about it," he said. "You owe me an explanation."

Lance froze and his mind went blank withKeith's face so close to his again. His heart beat fast and he almost said something flirty but he managed to stop himself. "Why do you care so much?" he finally said slowly.

The corner ofKeith's mouth twitched upward into a lopsided mischievous smile. Then he said in a poor imitation of Lance's voice, "I just wanted to see your pretty face." He cocked his eyebrow. "Wouldn't you want to know what that was about if I said something like that to you?"

This time, Lance knew he was blushing. He knewKeith was mocking him but he was too flustered to be annoyed. He tried to answer but nothing came to mind at first. Finally he closed his eyes and managed, ”I say a lot of stupid things okay?”

Keith smiled, looking at Lance unguardedly since the taller boy's eyes were closed. He quickly took in his jawline, the bright flash of color on his cheeks, the way his hair fell across his forehead. He held tighter to Lance's jacket for a second, then released him and pushed him lightly away. "I know you do," he said.

Lance had never been happier that insulting himself would get him out of that situation. He breathed heavily for a moment then opened his eyes. His heart was pounding hard as he held out one hand in the wall to steady himself. "Good enough explanation for you?" he asked, hoping he could leave.

Keith relaxed, crossing his arms across his chest and smiled. "Not quite," he said.

Lance gulped, nervous energy consuming him. "Not quite? I said something stupid, it's honestly that simple!" he tried to protest. He just wanted to leave before he did something stupid again.

Keith was getting tired of Lance's stupid excuses. He grabbed the front of Lance's shirt and pulled forward, throwing Lance onto the bed behind him.

Lance yelled in surprise asKeith threw him on the bed. He instinctively brought his hands to his face, thinkingKeith was going to attack him again.Keith climbed onto the bed on top of Lance, one knee on each side of the taller boy's pelvis. He leaned down close to him, bracing his elbows on the bed. His hair fell around his face. Lance's eyes were wild, butKeith grinned. "Why don't you move my hair, McClain?"

Lance slowly moved his hands when he realizedKeith wasn’t going to attack him, but regretted it when he realized how closeKeith was to him. He stiffened and held his breath asKeith smirked down at him. His heart was racing, but he didn't get his hopes up. 

"What are you doing?" Lance asked slowly.

Keith twitched his eyebrows up a little. "Move my hair," he said. "Don't you want to see my 'pretty face'?"

Lance was starting to feel like he was being mocked. He frowned. "Okay I get it. What I said freaked you out. I won't ever say that to you again, okay? This isn't funny. Get off of me,” he said seriously.

Lance squirmed but Keith was unrelenting. He leaned down even closer. When he spoke, his breath was sickly sweet. "Come on, Lance."

Lance stopped moving and his eyes widened. He couldn't breath and all he could see wasKeith. Flashes of a kiss sparked in his mind but he buried them as quickly as he could. He could tellKeith was waiting for him to move his hair, and with a shaky hand, he brushed it out ofKeith's face. Now he could seeKeith's eyes clearly.

Keith smiled a little. "Better?" he asked, his voice low and strangely seductive.

Lance was flustered and panicking by this point. He relieved this tension by flirting but he knew that wouldn't go well. "Yes. . . But stop messing around, this isn't funny," he said breathlessly.

"Who said I was messing around?" Keith asked.


	5. Yeah... Keith's Definitely Crazy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now that Keith and Lance have sort of worked things out, Keith's getting awful clingy and... just plain weird. Lance isn't sure what to do, and in his haste to find an out, he discovers something about Keith he would have never expected.

Lance's heart dropped to his stomach as he stared atKeith. He didn't quite believe what he heard but he wasn’t backing off either. Sparks were flying, but Lance was also terrified. In his dumbfounded state, he was only able to utter, “oh," in response.

Keith smiled down at Lance and Lance noticed that his eyes were significantly brighter violet than usual. Keith leaned down further until his lips brushed against Lance's collar bone. "Still think I'm trying to be funny?" he asked.

Goosebumps scattered all over Lance's body and he weakly tried to push Keith off of him. He hated admitting that he liked this type of attention, but something seemed off. The way his eyes were made Lance's suspension grow.

"Get off of me!" Lance said loudly, using his hips to throw Keith off.

Keith rolled over onto his back, looking at Lance with the same smug smile on his face. Lance rolled over and advanced on him. He pinned his arms down and pressed his knees on the side of Keith's hips as he stared at his eyes. They were really dilated and almost glowing purple. Lance was positive Keith didn't have glowing purple eyes.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Lance exclaimed.

Keith smiled and dropped his gaze from Lance's eyes to his mouth then back up to his eyes. "Damn, Lance. Way to take charge."

Lance tried to swallow the flustered sensation. "Keith, snap out of it! There is no way you would normally act like this." He tried to figure out how to get Pidge, Hunk, or even Allura into the room so they could help him. He knew he wouldn't be able to yell for them, but he also knew he couldn't leave Keith by himself without some sort of… He swallowed back uneasiness. "Keith, do you have any rope?" he asked.

Keith looked at Lance and smiled seductively. "I didn't know you were into that kind of stuff Lance,” he teased.

Lance blushed, but went along with it. “Yeah, yeah, sure. But do you have any?"

Keith nodded toward the closet. Lance rolled off of him, keeping a close eye on him and moved toward the closet. He opened it to find… a lot of stuff…A lot of really… kinky stuff. He quickly grabbed a pair of handcuffs and shut the closet door, trying to ignore the fact that knowing Keith had all of this stuff was super hot.

Lance quickly came back and kneeled on the bed again. Keith looked very willing to be tied up and it both aroused and flustered Lance. 

"Good choice,” Keith said smugly.

Lance placed one handcuff on Keith’s wrist, then, as he pretended to put the other on, he secured it to the bolted down bedpost. He immediately got off of Keith.

Keith glanced up at his wrist, now secured firmly to the bed, then back to Lance. He yanked on the cuff. "What gives?" he asked, the seductive growl in his voice disappearing.

Lance put this hands up as he walked backwards. "Just stay there. I'm going to go get help."He slammed his palm on the button to open the door and added, "I sure hope you forget all of this or something." Then he sprinted to find anyone who could help.

Keith yanked hard on his manacled wrist, but he wasn't going anywhere. He rolled over onto his stomach and yanked again and again. He knew his wrist would bruise, but he didn't care. He couldn't sit around and wait for Lance. He wanted him now. He needed him now.

Lance sprinted to the dining room, hoping someone was there, and thankful he ran into Pidge and Allura talking at the table.

"Pidge! Allura! I need help! Something is totally messed up with Keith!"

Pidge rolled her eyes. "What did you do this time?" she asked, not even looking up from her computer.

Lance frowned at her."He's acting really weird! His eyes are glowing purple and he attacked me again! I'm serious! Something isn't right!"

Pidge stood up and looked Lance over. "You don't look hurt at all," she noted. "But glowing eyes.... that's probably not good..." She looked over at Allura. "What do you think, Princess?"

Allura looked at Pidge and Lance with concern. "We should at least look at him. If something is wrong we need to correct it immediately,” she replied worriedly.

Keith's wrist was aching, but he still tugged at it. When he heard Lance return, he froze and looked over. Lance stood in the doorway, looking tired. Keith felt his lips melt back into a seductive smile.

Lance stared as Pidge and Allura came into the room. They both immediately noticed the glowing purple eyes. 

"Lance, you really needed to bring an audience? That's different, but if it’s what you like…” Keith said, his seductive smile not fading.

Lance blanched. "Shut up, Keith. There’s something majorly wrong with you! Fix him!"

Pidge and Allura looked at each other, a little awestruck and came over to Keith and started examining him.

"I understand what you mean when you explained that Keith is acting strange." Allura said.

"No kidding." Pidge agreed. Lance stayed away, not wanting Keith to somehow grab him.

Keith didn’t really like Allura poking and prodding around him. She was blocking his view of Lance. “Lancey Lance, what is going on?” He asked. “There’s nothing wrong with me!”

Pidge raised an eyebrow. "Lancey Lance? That's new, and out of character." 

"Yeah, you know what I said he attacked me. Well… Not the angry kind of attacking." Lance said, still keeping his distance.

Keith squirmed on the bed. “This isn’t fun anymore,” he complained. “Lance, take off the handcuffs!”

Allura looked at Pidge. "I've seen these eyes before when there is a mishap with the Altean healing magic. We should take him to the infirmary again."

Pidge looked at Allura confused. "I used the machinery. There is no way I miscalculated this. Maybe there is something wrong with it?"

“Laaaannncceeee” Keith whined. Lance looked at him for a second, then looked at Allura. “Hurry up and figure this out. We can’t just leave him tied to his bed!”

"Lance, please fetch Hunk. We will need someone to carry him to the infirmary for a body scan. I think I know what the problem is." Allura asked.

Lance nodded and sprinted to find Hunk. Five minutes later, he and Hunk returned.

Keith looked up as soon as Lance returned. “Lancey Lance!” he cried. “Please let me go! I’m not having fun anymore!”

Hunk looked at Keith and then at Lance dumbfounded. "Yeah, there is definitely something wrong…”

Lance did a dramatic "I told you so!" motion with his arms.

"Hunk, we are going to release Keith, but you need to hold him and take him to the infirmary.” Hunk nodded and moved closer to Keith.

Keith started squirming as they all got closer to him, looking uncomfortable and… “Hold on, guys,” Lance said, stopping them. “He’s really freaked out…” He pulled together some mental resistance and walked over to Keith, who looked like he was panicking which really worried Lance.

"Hey man, calm down, okay. We’re just trying to help,” Lance said softly, trying to calm him down.

Keith looked up at him. “I don’t understand what’s going on,” he said. He pulled at his manacled wrist. “I thought you and I were…”

Lance flushed and waved his arms around in a motion for Keith to be quiet. He glanced at the others, who looked at Lance with raised eyebrows. All except for Pidge, who smiled at him smugly. Lance sighed. "Here, let's make a deal. If you come to the infirmary so we can make sure nothing is wrong, then I'll do whatever you want afterwards. Okay?" he said, really hoping Keith would have no memory of this afterwards.

Keith brightened up at that. “Promise?” he asked, the sultry lilt back in his voice. Lance swallowed hard and nodded. “Promise.”

Keith stopped struggling and even looked up at Hunk. "I can walk there by myself. I won't go anywhere." Keith added, glancing at Lance and winking.

Lance looked around. “Where’s the key for the cuffs?” He asked. Keith directed him to the closet, which Lance opened, trying not to let the other Paladins see how much stuff Keith had in there. He grabbed the key and returned to the bed. Allura and Hunk were in utter shock as they looked after Keith. Contrastingly, Pidge looked extremely amused.

Lance came back to Keith and unlocked the handcuffs. Now that Keith was free, he kept his guard up. Keith stood and moved toward him, draping his arms around the taller boy’s shoulders. Lance looked to Pidge and Hunk for help, but Pidge was grinning and Hunk was looking down, uncomfortable.

Lance flushed a darker red, partially because of Keith's touch and partially because everyone looked at him funny. Lance swallowed and tried to keep at least some distance between their faces. Lance wasn't sure how much of this he could take of this before he broke. "Let's get to the infirmary then,” he finally said. Everyone slowly nodded.

Keith pressed his face into the crook of Lance’s neck and Lance tried not to flinch away from his warm touch. “As long as I’m with Lancey Lance I don’t care where I go,” he said

Pidge was trying to hold back a snicker and failing miserably. 

Lance was dying from holding back and total embarrassment. He motioned everyone to follow as he started to walk out of Keith's room with Keith still clinging onto him. Finally, after a couple of minutes, they reached the infirmary. Lance peeled himself away from Keith and let Hunk push Keith onto a bed in the infirmary. The whole time, Keith was looking at Lance with that same seductive smile, which made his cheeks somehow hotter. 

“Hurry up and fix him,” Lance said, his voice high pitched and a little squeaky.

Pidge was already issuing a scan as Allura was watching over her. Once they scanned Keith's brain, Pidge immediately noticed something was off.

"According to these comparison scans, Keith's limbic system is out of control." Pidge said.

"Great what does that even mean?" Lance asked. 

"I means that his emotions are going haywire. I wonder why that is." Pidge wondered.

Keith moved to stand up. “Lance, are we done yet? I’m getting impatient!”

Lance glared at him. “Shut your quiznack, Keith,” he snapped. Keith reached out and grabbed the front of Lance’s shirt and pulled him down to his level, Lance yelping in surprise as he was pulled forward.

Hunk immediately stepped between them and pulled Lance away from Keith.

"Why did Keith decide to take his emotions on Lance specifically?" Hunk asked.

"I don't know but I'm trying to figure out how to reverse this,” Pidge replied quickly, still feeling rather amused. She decided Lance had probably had enough.

"I think I know what to do. Here,” Allura replied and pushed a few buttons. The machinery whizzed and beams hit Keith's head.

Keith looked very freaked out for a second, then his eyes rolled back in his head and he fell limp onto the bed. Lance glared at Pidge. “What did you do?”

Pidge held her arms up in her defense. "Calm down Lance. His mind has just been restored back to normal. In the lack of a better term, Keith's brain is being restarted." PIdge explained.

“Turn it off and turn it back on,” Hunk said with a smile. “Nice.”

Lance looked at Keith. “So when he wakes up he’ll be back to his grumpy emo self?” He asked.

"More or less. Hopefully his aggression from before won't come back, though. I think the change in brain functioning helped calm the aggression somehow,” Pidge explained. Then she thought for a moment. "I don't know why it got to this point in the first place though."

"Pidge, if I may ask, did you program the machine to treat the aggression that Keith demonstrated." Allura asked.

"Yeah. Why?" Pidge asked.

"What word did you use?"

Pidge said a word that Lance had no clue what it meant.

"Oh! I see! I understand the mistake then. That word is translated into affection or love, where as the word," Allura said a word that sounded very similar, "which means calm and peace."

Pidge looked very unamused and embarrassed.

“So all of that was just a flub in translation?” Lance asked. He tried not to be disappointed. He looked at Keith again, then turned. “Thank god that’s over,” he said. He couldn’t keep all of the disappointment out of his voice.

Hunk looked at Lance, concerned and confused. "Did you like all of that attention from him?" he asked, pointing out how disappointed Lance sounded.

Lance spun around with his arms waving. "Of course not! He was freaking me out and embarrassing me! It was _weird!_ ”

Allura smiled a little. “You know, Lance… you can’t just create affection out of nothing. What happened was basically that Keith’s aggression was converted to something a bit more… affecting. But it doesn’t mean the affection isn’t real…”

Lance really hoped the rush of warmth didn't go to his cheeks. "I never said I wanted that affection. I don't know what’s worse, Keith punching me or clinging to me… You sure he’ll be back to normal soon?" he asked, using large arm gestures as if to make his point.

"Yeah, he should be waking up any moment now." Pidge said, upset that she got that stupid word incorrect.

“Good,” Lance said. He buried his hands in his pockets and walked out of the infirmary. “Let me know how he acts when he wakes up,” he called.

Hunk looked after him. "Hey! Don't you wanna be here when he wakes up?" he asked.

“I've had a rough day. I don't want to be here if he’s going back to being aggressive." Lance answered before he got to the door.

"I don't think Keith will be aggressive when he wakes up. Please, Lance. I'm sure it will mean something to stay when he wakes up,” Allura tried.

Lance didn’t stop walking. “No thanks,” he said. He made his way back to his room and laid down on the bed. He thought through everything that happened and about the feelings he’d felt while Keith was… acting weird…

He mulled over what happened. He knew he was in massive trouble when he realized, beyond the crippling embarrassment, he liked the attention he was getting from Keith. He groaned, finally admitting it to himself and buried his face into his pillow. However, the sinking disappointment settled in when he realized he most likely wouldn’t get that again. Keith was never affectionate like that and he would probably go back to being extremely serious and obsessive about finding Shiro. A nasty feeling bubbled in his chest when he thought about Keith and Shiro, but he pushed that thought away.


	6. Everyone Is Sick Of This... Like... Really Sick Of This

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith's all back to normal after being driven to lovey dovey insanity due a translation error. But now he's having a hard time forgetting that all of those feelings were genuine, but he hadn't meant for them to surface. Pidge is sick of it and decides to intervene. Then, even the Red Lion gets involved.

Lance moped for a long time, then got hungry. As much as he wanted to avoid seeing Keith at all costs, he wanted food. He pulled himself out of bed and headed to the door. He stepped out into the hallway and started toward the dining room. Halfway there, Keith pushed past him, walking fast, head down. He didn't look at Lance as he passed.

"What gives, Keith!?" he snapped at Keith. Then he kept quiet, feeling disappointed again that Keith was more or less back to normal and decided to just keep walking.

Keith stopped and turned at Lance's outburst and watched as he walked away. He gritted his teeth, swallowing tears and embarrassment, and continued on his way to the training deck. He knew it was stupid, but he set it for the same simulation he'd used the other day and moved to the center of the room.

Lance continued to walk, but something kept pulling him to see how Keith was doing. He was curious if he remembered anything. He really hoped he wouldn’t… that would be painfully awkward, but there was a part of him that was really worried. He settled to grab some food before he would go looking for him.

Keith fought the training bots but he wasn't really feeling it. He settled for defense, rather than offense and just kinda… let the bots beat him up. He tried to block their hits, but his heart wasn't in it. He dodged some, and some he purposefully let hit home.

Lance grabbed something simple to eat, eager to see how Keith was doing. He snuck around the castle, hoping no one would find him and ask him what he was doing. He already felt embarrassed but he was still curious and concerned.He decided to check the common areas before going to Keith's room, but he very quickly found him in the training room. Lance watched him for a moment. He seemed fine, except his fighting was all defensive and he was sucking at it.

Lance shut off the simulation and stepped into the room. "Hey man," he said. Keith pulled himself off the floor and avoided Lance's gaze. "Look man," Lance continued. "We need to talk."

Keith folded his arms over his chest and looked past Lance, his cheeks growing red. "I don't want to talk about it."

Lance both felt a rush of heat in his blood and his heart dropped down to his stomach. Shit, Keith remembered everything. 

"So you remember everything?" he asked.

Keith glared at the floor. Then Lance saw something he hadn't expected to see. Keith had tears dripping down his face. Lance reached out to try and comfort him, but Keith knocked his hand out of the way. "I don't want to talk about it," he said. "Do you even know how humiliating that was for me?"

Lance felt anger make his blood boil. "Yeah! I do actually!" he cried out with his arms. He took a deep breath and sighed. “Listen," he said, trying to sound calm. “Let's just agree to forget about it. It'll be easier for everyone."

Keith shook his head. "You don't understand," he said. "I forced myself onto you… I doubt you even care about me anyways, I just…" he took a shaky breath and shook his head. "Forget it. Just… stay away from me."

Lance perked up. “Hey, hey, hey, wait up there.Don't just start assuming shit like that." He sighed, trying to figure out how to phrase that he didn't want Keith to be upset with him without letting his true feeling be known. "As much as that was, weird, I liked it when you were nice to me. I liked being around you. So… maybe after a break, we can stay nice to each other?" he said, tripping over his words.

Keith shook his head and pushed past Lance, furiously pushing tears off of his cheeks. "Just forget about it," he muttered. He started toward the door, but Lance caught hold of his sleeve and held on firmly.

"I will forget about it, but as a _friend_ , I'm not gonna let you get bent out of shape about this.” Lance didn't care if Keith would punch him. He forcefully pulled him back to him and wrapped his arms tightly around him. "You already cried once in front of me, what's the big deal about doing it again?” Lance said, a little softer.

"Lance, you aren't listening to me!" Keith snarled. He pushed away from Lance and turned in a circle, as if he were looking for a way out. He looked lost. “I…" he huffed. “Just… "

Lance was feeling frustrated but curious enough not to give up. "Look! I'm trying to listen! It's kinda hard to know what is going on if you don't talk to me!"

Keith whirled on him and glared at him. Lance was relieved to see that his eyes were back to normal. "You don't get it!" he shouted. "I don't want to be friends!" He wiped away more tears, then turned and ran.

Lance stood frozen where he was. His chest was hurting, but it wasn't physical pain. He had plenty of experience with physical pain. He _had_ felt this pain in his chest before, but this time, it was much stronger. He was surprised when he felt hot tears fall on his face. He didn't even feel angry, just completely lost. He stood where he was for a few minutes, then ran to his bedroom, praying no one would see him.

Pidge was beyond sick and tired of Keith and Lance acting like this. It had been a week since the whole translation error happened, and Keith had barely left his room. Lance refused to talk about it, and whenever Keith entered the room, Lance would go quiet and glare at him. Keith would grab what he came for and just as quickly disappear.

Not long after Keith and Lance stopped talking to each other, Keith started to look for Shiro almost obsessively. Whenever they had free time or weren’t needed for an emergency, Keith was out in the Red Lion searching.

Lance became more bitter as more time passed. He tried to get over his crushing disappointment, but he still woke up with burning anger. Not only that, but he also felt a little jealous that Keith was so desperately looking for Shiro.

Keith was throwing himself into the search with a vengeance, trying to use it to distract himself from the feelings that kept swimming up in his stomach. He needed Shiro back. Shiro was the only one who could help him. Lance tried to show that he was completely fine around the other members of the team. He was secretly glad Keith was gone a lot and that Shiro wasn't around. He was certain they would not be able to form Voltron at this point since Keith refused to be Lance's friend. 

Finally, Pidge decided to intervene once again. This time, however, she did it with Keith, since Lance had said multiple times that Keith declared he didn't want to be friends.

Pidge knocked on Keith's door. "Keith, can I come in?" she called. A second later, Keith appeared in the doorway, looking tired. He leaned his arm against the wall. "What's up, Pidge?"

Pidge forced herself in and closed the door behind her. She folded her arms and looked right at Keith with determination. Their height difference wasn’t even phasing her.

"Okay, it’s been almost two weeks since that weird incident! Enough is enough. I don't know what your issue is but just make up with Lance and be done with this petty drama.”

Keith shook his head. "I don't know what you want me to do, Katie," he said. "I can’t… I'm humiliated."

Pidge groaned loudly. "Still! It's been two weeks! No one cares anymore, except for the team to be a team. I tried to talk to Lance but he just keeps saying you don't want to be his friend anymore. If it’s really just because you are humiliated, then forget about it. Once again, no one cares at all." she said, trying to convince Keith.

“Lance… " Keith groaned. "He misunderstood me," he said. "I didn't say…" he sat down on the bed and put his head in his hands. "That idiot," he muttered.

"Okay, if there was a misunderstanding then go talk to him! Let's get this over with so we can all be friends again and not have this weird tension all the time. It’s. Driving. Me. Nuts!" Pidge emphasized.

"If he took it the way you're saying he did," Keith said, “…he didn't even consider that maybe I meant something different." Pidge shook her head and sat down next to him.

"Okay, then what did you mean then? I mean, if someone told me they didn't want to be friends with me, I would think they didn't like me at all." she said, trying to be patient.

Keith fixed her with a glare. "Do you really not know what I meant?” he asked. He looked down at his hands. “Look… what I did last week… was really bad…" he said.

Pidge looked at him, then smiled smugly. "Well, I thought about it, but didn't have enough proof. So, what you meant to tell Lance is that you don't want to be _just_ friends?" She asked.

Keith's cheeks went hot. "Yeah," he said. "But I panicked and I guess I said it wrong…"

"Uh, yeah. Lance is completely convinced you hate him. He doesn't stop rambling about it. So, easy fix. Just tell him and get it done with." Pidge said simply.

Keith whirled and stared at her. "WHAT?!" he shouted so loud that she flinched. "I CAN'T JUST DO THAT! WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO? WALK UP TO HIM AND BE LIKE 'oh hey lance, sorry you think I hate you, I'm actually really into you’?”

Pidge blinked at him, then cracked a smile. "I mean, yeah, that's one effective way to say it. At least he won't miss the point.”

"He would though," Keith said. "He's such an idiot. And I've done so much stupid stuff these past few weeks. I just… I've spent so much time looking for Shiro because I need to get my mind off of everything else. And if Shiro were here… maybe he could help me figure things out."

Pidge's smiled faded at the mention of Shiro. "Hey, I'm glad you’re looking for Shiro and figuring out how to deal with those things but… I don't think you'll stop feeling this way just by finding Shiro. He might even tell you the same thing I'm saying now,” she said seriously.

Keith nodded. "Yeah, I know…" He stood up. “Okay… I'm gonna do it…"

Pidge encouraged him to confess and she even walked with him to look for Lance.

Lance was in the hangar with the Lions, just wandering around and talking to Blue. He sometimes did when he felt like he had no one to talk to. Normally he would feel stupid, but since Blue had a connection with him, it felt like someone was at least listening.

Keith hesitated outside the hangar, but Pidge shoved him through the door. "Hey Lance, look it's Keith!" she shouted before turning and running. Keith stumbled for a moment and then righted himself. Suddenly he wanted very much to disappear.

Lance also spasmed when he heard Pidge say Keith's name and stopped talking to Blue. He looked up, his heart racing but then his mood turned sour. He knew better than to get his hopes up. "What do you want?” he asked bitterly.

Keith's heart dropped through his chest, stomach and feet and he could almost feel it crash through the floor too. This was not starting well. He cleared his throat. "H-hey man," he stuttered.

"Wow, you’re talking to me. That's a first." Lance was actually really surprised that Keith was talking to him. He was so used to Keith either not being there or ignoring him.

Keith's chest burned. He looked around for a second, fumbling for words. “I… uh…Listen… about the other day…"

Lance didn't say anything. He was still sitting where he had been talking to Blue. He moved his body around so he was facing Keith so he knew he was listening. "I thought we agreed to forget about that,” he finally said.

Keith was a little startled. "About what I said… about not wanting to be friends… I…" he looked around. How the hell was he supposed to tell Lance that he wanted more than friends, not less? "I'm just…" Lance stared at him expectantly, and he faltered. "I'm gonna take my lion out. I gotta look for Shiro," he blurted.

Lance looked at Keith in bewilderment, which turned into anger really quickly. Keith looked like he was about to say something important. "That's all you were going to tell me?! You need to look for Shiro? Seriously? I don't need to know that!" he bellowed as he flailed his arms in anger.

Keith made his way quickly to his lion. "Sorry," he said, trying to shoulder past Lance. He didn't look at him, and felt tears burning in his eyes. "Damn it," he muttered. He swung himself up into his lion and sat in the pilot's chair.

Lance was still yelling, angry at Keith but also angry at himself for getting his hopes up. The Red Lion came to life and started to walk to towards Lance, who was standing in the middle of the walkway. Lance didn't move, knowing he wouldn't be stepped on.

Red Roared and pounced, despite Keith screaming at it to not to because Lance was standing right there. The lion opened its mouth at the last second and Lance tumbled inside. Then red shot out of the hangar and away from the castle, trapping Keith and Lance together inside.


	7. Even Red Is Sick Of This

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Red Lion has taken Keith and Lance out into space to force them to talk things out. Things don't go according to plan, not that they ever have before...

Lance screamed as Red suddenly "swallowed" him and he found himself falling into the cock pit of Red. He tumbled down and found himself lying on the floor, Keith staring at him in horror.

"What the hell Keith?!" Lance stumbled around until he was on his feet. "Why did you do that?! Take me back to the castle now!" he demanded.

“I didn’t do anything!” Keith said. He turned and pulled on the lion’s controls, but Red ignored him. Keith kicked the console. “Come on, you stupid cat! Listen to me!!!”

Lance calmed a little bit when he realized it wasn't Keith who grabbed him, but then he wondered what was going on with Red.

"I know from experience, kicking the console doesn't help at all." Lance piped it.

“Shut up!” Keith snapped, his face bright red. “Come on! Stupid thing! Turn around!!!” He pushed away from the controls after a moment and curled up in his chair, burying his head in his hands.

Lance sighed. "I guess I'm stuck here then." He was going to just sit away from Keith and let him mope, but that all too familiar feeling of wanting to be there for Keith took over again. He walked over. "Well, if we’re going to be stuck here together, might as well get comfortable, right?" he said, his voice softer.

Keith didn’t move for a second. He was panicking. Mainly because he had a pretty good idea of what his lion was doing and he wasn’t happy about it. Red wasn’t going to give him control until he told Lance everything…

Lance sighed when Keith didn't answer. Now that he was alone with him and feeling bad for him, his anger melted. "Since we are stuck here anyways, you wanna talk? Or do you still hate my guts?" he asked solemnly.

Keith melted into himself miserably. He couldn’t tell Lance how he felt. Not with the younger boy throwing stuff like ‘hate my guts’ around.

Lance didn't like that Keith wasn't answering, but at least he wasn't angry at him. Lance was tempted to at least put a hand on his shoulder, but remembered how he tried to give him a hug and how brutally Keith rejected that. "Well, I'll be right here when you want to talk, okay? I mean, not like I can really go anywhere else.”

Keith said nothing, and so the two sat in silence while red flew them further and further away from the castle of lions. Finally, the lion stopped flying and they floated in open space. Keith had been right. They weren’t going anywhere until he fixed this. But he didn’t know what to do. Lance noticed that Red stopped flying and they were only floating in space. He was a little worried, but he also smiled, amused, because he had a strange feeling Red was just as sick as everyone else was of his and Keith's fight, or whatever it was currently.

"So, uh, got any good stories? Or games to play? I don't think we'll be going back anytime soon,” Lance asked, trying to lighten the mood.

Keith finally looked at him, tears in his eyes. “This isn’t funny, Lance!” He snapped. “Stop joking around!”

Lance put his hands up in defense. "Woah, chill Keith. I'm just trying to break the tension. Look, I wanna get out of here as much as you do, but I don't think Red will let us,” he defended.

Keith growled in frustration as he looked over the controls again, though he knew nothing there would help their situation. He wondered if he could outstubborn Red… probably not since the lion was a machine.

Lance walked over to Keith, and moved his chair back a bit so he could sit on the space between the chair and controls. If he couldn’t get Keith to talk, maybe forcing him to look at him would change it. Lance doubted it, but it was worth a shot. “I get that you’re stubborn, but I don't want to die from starvation because of it,” he said lightheartedly.

Keith glared at him. “Red wouldn’t let that happen,” he growled. “I don’t know what to do,” he lied. “I have no idea why Red is acting this way.”

"Well, maybe we can just, talk? Like, we don't have to talk about serious stuff. Just talk, maybe?" Lance suggested. He was honestly bored out of his mind and having Keith react at all was better than doing nothing.

Keith glared at him for a moment more. “Fine,” he finally conceded. “Talk.”

Lance frowned at bit at Keith's glare. "Man if looks could kill. But anyways, uh…" He honestly didn't think he would get this far. "I would ask how you’re doing, but you’re showing that pretty well right now,” he tried to start.

“Don’t ask a question you know the answer to, then,” Keith said, still glaring. He could see that Lance was trying but he was so mad at himself and his lion that it didn’t really matter.

Lance groaned loudly. "Hey, I'm trying okay? It's kinda hard to come up with something when all you’re doing is glaring daggers at me. What did I even do wrong?" he asked, hating that Keith was mad at him for, as far as he knew, no reason.

Keith paused. Lance hadn’t really done anything wrong. But… he continued to glare. “I just didn’t really want you here,” he said. Then he cussed under his breath. ‘Why would you say that?’ he asked himself in his head. ‘Idiot!’

Lance felt a sting of pain in his chest, and it stayed there but he didn't leave like he wanted. He saw how Keith said that and then immediately regretted it. It was easily written on his face. “Ouch," Lance sighed. “You're not very good at this talking thing, are you?”

Keith took a deep breath. “No, I’m not,” he said. He looked down and refused to look back up at Lance. “I’m sorry about what happened last week…”

Lance perked up. They were finally getting to that subject and as much as Lance was still deeply hurt by Keith's words and actions, deep down he just wanted everything to be okay again.

"Took you long enough to apologize,” he grumbled lightheartedly, smiling at Keith. "I gotta say though… that hurt, some of the things you said,” he slowly admitted, putting his hand behind his head, glancing away from Keith.

“That wasn’t what I was talking about,” Keith said. “I’m sorry about what I did while my head was messed up. I… made a fool out of myself and I dragged you along with me…”

Lance felt an obnoxious flash of heat consume him and hoped it didn't get to his cheeks. “Oh… that. Seriously, don't worry about it. It didn't take long to tell that something was wrong." he said quietly, fighting down the memories of excitement.

“It was humiliating,” Keith said. He fumbled for the right words to say. “It was like… I knew that what I was doing wasn’t right but… I didn’t want to stop and… God I made a fool out of myself.” Lance shook his head but Keith wasn’t finished. “You had to handcuff me to my bed!” he said.

Lance knew he could probably make Keith more embarrassed, and it would be extremely enjoyable, but he knew Keith would stop talking or throw him out of Red if he did. "Hey! You wouldn't get off of me and that was the only way I could keep you down long enough to get help!" Lance defended himself, knowing his cheeks grew pink. “But… I get that it was humiliating. I was there too. But hey, at least you have a damn good excuse for your actions." Lance said, still having a hard time looking at Keith.

Keith looked at him, a little confused. “What’s that supposed to mean?” he asked. He thought back over what he remembered from last week, but he couldn’t think of anything Lance might’ve needed an excuse for.

Lance blinked at him, confused, but then he realized something. "Oh, right, you were knocked out. We figured out that when Pidge fixed you up after you almost killed yourself in the training room, she accidentally hit a part of your brain that made you go crazy." Lance explained.

“What does that have to do with having an excuse?” Keith asked. “I mean… I get that I sort of have an excuse but you said it like… you needed an excuse for something but don’t have one. But I can’t think of anything you did that would require an excuse…”

There was no way in hell Lance was going to admit that he liked what Keith did to him. ”That’s… beside the point. Look, I get that you were humiliated, but at least you have an excuse to help you get over the embarrassment. But… what I don't get is why you told me you didn't want to be friends, especially after everything I did for you,” he asked. He knew he was walking on thin ice but he had to know why.

Keith turned bright red. Like… next level red. He shut down immediately, mental walls shooting up. He glared at the floor and said nothing. Lance blinked in surprise. Keith blushed faster and darker than Lance ever thought was possible. Lance started to think that maybe that was not what Keith meant to say, now that he knew he was bad at talking about things clearly.

"Hey, I didn't mean to hit a soft spot. I need to know what you meant. It's been eating at me for weeks,” Lance said softly, moving a little closer to Keith's chair.

Keith bit his tongue, then stood so fast he scared Lance, who scrambled backward and fell, hitting his head on the console. Keith took a few steps, then grabbed a handful of his own hair and turned to look back at Lance. “You’re such an idiot!” He yelled.

Lance hit his head pretty hard on the console and he rubbed it as Keith yelled at him. He didn't know if he should be annoyed or not, but the shock of the pain didn't make him as angry. "Yeah, you've told me that many times already." Lance hissed.

“You’re a fucking idiot!” Keith snarled. “I’m amazed you haven’t gotten yourself killed yet, you’re so god damn stupid! You’re so unobservant and hot headed and-“ Keith stopped suddenly, when he saw the hurt on Lance’s face.

Lance decided that he had to be mentally insane for being attracted to Keith. "Thanks. I needed that,” he said, his voice flat. He got up and rubbed his head and tried to find a spot on the Lion he could be left alone. Or maybe at least find gear and escape.

Keith glared at him. “You flirt with everyone all the time, but when anyone flirts with you… you wouldn’t know it if I slapped you in the face with it. You’re an idiot, McClain.”

Lance was thoroughly confused but angry and intrigued enough to face Keith. "Where the hell did that come from? Is it because of that stupid thing I said awhile ago? I told you to forget about it." The more Lance talked, the angrier he became. "And why do you even care? Apparently your way of trying to connect with people is by insulting them and beating them up. Yeah, maybe I shamelessly flirt but at least I’m not a royal douche to my friends!"

Keith stepped forward and snatched the front of Lance’s jacket again and pulled him close. “You aren’t listening to me!” He yelled in his face. He pulled Lance even closer until their faces were just inches apart. Lance looked starstruck, but then horror crept onto his face.

“Oh man, it’s happening again. I thought Pidge said this wouldn’t happen again!” He looked around and pushed away from Keith. “Dude, just chill out for a second.” He fumbled in his pocket for a second and then brought out a pair of handcuffs. Keith eyed them, confused. “Lance…? What are you doing?”

Lance pulled away from Keith, determined not to be dragged down that hole again. He was not ready to be disappointed again. "I don't know why you choose me whenever you go nuts, but I can't risk getting hurt again." He grabbed Keith's wrist and locked a cuff around it. He then used the other to handcuff him to the pilot's chair. "Not again!"

Keith tried to stand up, but the cuffs held him down. "Lance!" he snapped. "There's nothing wrong with me!”

Lance looked panicked as he poured over the controls. "That's what you said last time!" Keith grabbed Lance's sleeve with his free hand and pulled him close to him.

Lance was pulled backwards, not prepared for Keith to pull on his wrist, and fell backward onto Keith's lap. Lance froze for a moment as a rush of electric heat overcame him. After the sensation vanished, he jumped out of Keith's lap. "Like hell there isn't something wrong with you!" he said, pointing at Keith and keeping his distance.

Keith tried again to get up out of the chair. "Lance, I'm serious, let me go!" he snapped. He pulled on the handcuff, trying not to let Lance see that he was kinda turned on by this. Finally, he reached down with his other hand and summoned his bayard.

Lance saw what he was doing and grabbed his wrist. "Oh no, you are so not allowed a weapon right now,” he hissed. By some form of luck or magic, probably both, Lance managed to unlock the handcuffs, hold onto both wrists and put them behind Keith's back, the chain of the handcuffs around the arm of the seat. He snapped the cuffs shut.

“Okay… just… relax for a moment." Lance panted heavily. Keith had resisted him and put up a good fight.

Keith was pissed. He pulled forward on the restraints but he wasn’t going anywhere. “Lance!” He said. “Listen to me! Look at me! Didn’t you say that when I went crazy my eyes were glowing?” He stared at Lance. “Look at me!”

Lance breathed for a moment and looked at Keith's eyes. His heart dropped when he realized that his eyes were not glowing purple like they were when he was going nuts.

“Oh…" he said slowly. "Well, okay, maybe you’re not going crazy but I’m honestly getting sick of you always threatening me and beating me up. I might keep you there until we’ve both calmed down."

Keith struggled in earnest. "What?!" he cried. "Lance, this isn't funny! Let me go!" Lance looked at him for a moment, then a sort of smug smile made it's way onto his face. "If you're going to keep yelling at me," he said, "I might have to shut you up."

Lance was pretty proud of himself. Keith would probably take it as to use duct tape or whatever, but Lance had other intentions that he wasn't actually going to act upon. But it still amused him. He kept smiling as Keith struggled.

"McClain! I swear when I get out of this." Keith started.

"Hey, the more you yell at me the less I want to let you go. Maybe start giving me sweet compliments like you did that one time. I really like that,” Lance replied.

"You mean that time I was high off of whatever weird shit Pidge put in my medication?" Keith snarled. He jerked on his hands, hard enough that he winced, pain flashing up his arm. "Fuck you, Lance! I-" Keith didn't finish what he wanted to say, because Lance clamped his hand over Keith's mouth.

Lance looked at Keith seriously, then smiled smugly. He was done with Keith's attitude and his confusing actions. He figured he would confuse him as much as he could in revenge. "Fuck me? Why not? Go ahead. Just try not to let it hurt too much okay?" Lance said smoothly.

Keith stopped struggling and yelling against Lance's hand. His eyes flicked up to look at Lance, wide as a doe's. Then he turned bright red again. Then something happened that Lance was not prepared for. Keith's eyes filled with tears. Lance's smile completely disappeared and instead of feeling great about confusing him, he was filled with confusion and concern and immediately took his hand off of Keith’s mouth.

"Wait, what did I do? Why…?" Lance panicked. Even though he had seen Keith cry at least a few times, seeing it well up in his eyes freaked him out more.

"I get it, okay?" Keith snapped, his voice thick with emotion. "You don't need to tease me about it any more!" He pulled on his wrists again, but they weren't going anywhere. He slumped into the chair, defeated.

Lance knew he did something wrong, but he wasn't exactly sure why. However, he moved over to Keith. He felt terrible and that overwhelming sensation to help Keith out when he looked like that. He half laid on the chair and wrapped his arms around Keith, holding him in a tight hug. He held on tightly just in case Keith tried to push him away somehow.

"Hey, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you,” he said softly. “I was only teasing…”

Keith squirmed underneath Lance, but he couldn't get free. He hung his head and let embarrassment consume him. He started to sob, feebly trying to pull his wrists free. Lance held onto him, until he felt his body give up and start to shake. He knew Keith could get emotional, but man, he had been holding a lot back.

Keith's wrists were aching, but he still twisted them around. Finally, Lance let go of him and stepped back. Keith hung his head and continued to cry, tears dripping down his nose and cheeks and spattering his pants.

Lance had a strange feeling that he would regret this later, but he grabbed the key for the handcuffs and let Keith go. He backed off a bit just in case Keith decided to throw another punch at him. He knew he wasn't the smartest, but he could learn quickly if pain was involved.

Keith brought his hands around in front of him and clasped them tightly in his lap. He shuddered, feeling emotion wind up his throat and threaten to choke him. His hair fell around his face as his body shook. When Lance realized Keith was not going to attack him, he came a little closer and knelt next to him. He wasn't sure what to do, since Keith was freaking out again. Lance had a sneaking suspicion how to distract him, but if his theory was incorrect… Lance shuddered at that thought. Instead, he reached out and put his hand on Keith’s. Keith flinched as he felt Lance touch his hand. Lance noticed and pulled his hand back for a second, then gritted his teeth and grabbed onto Keith's hand and held it, tightly. Keith still didn't look up. Lance reached out with his other hand and moved Keith's hair out of his face.

That seemed to wake Keith up a bit. He looked at Lance when he moved his hair. However, there were no cheesy pick up lines this time. Lance looked at Keith with a mixture of concern and regret. However, after a moment, he offered him a small smile, his hand still on top of Keith's.

Keith's cheeks were glistening with tears. His eyes swam in them, and his cheeks were red. He bit his lip, so hard he tasted blood. He knew what he wanted to do, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. Lance could see a little blood run from Keith's lips and he put this hand on Keith's wet cheeks and his thumb on his lip.

"Hey, relax. We don't need more blood drained out of you,” he said, concerned as he tried to make Keith relax. He figured he could try and make Keith laugh. "I know my presence is overwhelming, but there’s no need to be flustered."

Keith didn't look at Lance. He wanted so badly to tilt his head into Lance's touch, but he felt like... maybe that wasn't okay. He felt Lance brush his thumb over his lip, wiping blood away and sending heat and electricity singing through him. Keith gritted his teeth.

Lance was a little disappointed when Keith didn't even smile. In fact, he seemed more tense. He wasn't angry at least, Lance thought. He was tempted just to lean in and touch those now slightly bloodied lips, but he was terrified. He took a deep breath and decided to test his limits. He moved a little closer.

As luck would have it, as it would for any moment that romantically tense, there was a loud crashing noise and Red lurched forward enough that both Lance and Keith flew off of the chair. It took a moment for Lance to realize what happened and the Keith had fallen right on top of him and they knocked heads.

Keith looked down at Lance, his hands braced on either side of the brunette's head. He looked shell shocked. Then he looked up and shouted, just in time for Red to jostle again. Keith lost his balance and fell on top of Lance again with all of his weight. This time, Lance was certain that he felt something brush against his lips when Keith fell on him again. He didn't know what was stronger, the fear that someone or something was attacking them or arousal that Keith may have unwittingly kissed him.

Keith wasn't focused on that right now. He was much more focused on who or what could be attacking his lion. He scrambled off the floor and sat behind the controls. "You ready to listen to me now, you stupid robot?" he snarled. The lion responded with a growl. Lance wiped his mouth on his hand and his heart skipped a beat when he saw blood on his hand. He was certain he wasn't bleeding… But Keith was.

Lance immediately stood up and grabbed to the back of the chair. They were hit again. The aroused feelings were replaced by fear and focus. The same adrenaline that coursed though him whenever he was battling something came in full force.

"What is hitting us?!" Lance cried out.

"Galra ship!" Keith yelled. His hard, driven self was back, the sobbing mess he'd been just moments before nowhere to be seen. The lion tilted and Keith grunted. "Damn it! I can't hit them. They have a shield up!"

"How did the Galra find us?! Sorry, wrong question, how are we getting out of here?!" Lance cried as Red started to dodge the open fire attacks.

Keith glared out the window. "I don't know," he said. "Damn it! I didn't mean for you to be out here in the first place!" He jerked on the controls and the lion dove, sending Lance's stomach up into his throat.

Lance knew that Red was fast and agile, but being in the Red Lion really showed it. "Can we hide or escape? We can’t take them on our own. Or we can call the others?" Lance spurted out suggestions.

Keith grappled with the controls some more. "I'm working on it," he growled. Red jolted again as a beam from the galra ship caught them, stopping them mid flight. Both Lance and Keith pitched forward. "Shit shit shit," Keith yelled. He pulled on the controls. "Red's not responding.”

"What?!" Lance started to panic. "I am definitely a plus one for panicking if you are too." he managed, not hiding his fear.

Keith stood up and summoned his bayard. "This is gonna suck," he said. "Without our gear… this is gonna be really challenging." He turned to Lance. "I have no idea how we're gonna get out of this."

"Send a distress signal? If we get captured then at least the others can find us?!" Lance exclaimed. He felt around for his bayard, relieved when he realized that he brought it. Keith punched in a distress signal on the lion's console, then turned back to the doors to the lion.

"This is gonna suck," he said again. The doors opened, thanks to the galra soldiers prying them open. Keith looked at Lance. "It's been an honor flying with you," he said. Now Lance was really panicking.

"Don't you dare say that! Say that when you know we are gonna die. And when that happens, I need to tell you something.”

Before Keith could ask what Lance meant, the Galra soldiers seized them and the Red Lion was taken captive. 


	8. Onboard The Galra Ship

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith and Lance have been captured by a Galra Ship. And none other than Haggar has decided to see to their interrogation. Will anyone be able to save them?

Keith went down fighting, slashing with his sword. But the galra were faster, stronger, and they outnumbered him ten to one. One hit him over the head and he collapsed. Lance yelled his name.

Lance immediately surrendered in fear that they would hurt Keith more. The Galra tied their hands and soon, the Red Lion was being pulled into their ship. Lance kept telling the Galra that they will go peaceful as long as they didn't hurt Keith.

They dragged Keith along since he was unconscious. Lance stumbled after them, watching as Keith's legs dragged on the floor behind him. "What are you gonna do to us?" he asked. In response, the galra soldier walking next to Keith kicked the unconscious paladin's leg, hard. Lance winced and decided it was better to shut up. He walked in silence until the Galra soldiers threw both of them in a cell. Suddenly, their restraints disappeared. Lance looked at the Galra soldiers seriously until they closed the door. Then he immediate went to check on Keith. He knelt on the floor and cradled Keith’s head. “We are royally fucked." Lance sighed.

After a few minutes, Keith groaned and opened his eyes. "What happened?" he asked. "We got wrecked," Lance said, jumping to attention. "How's your head? You got hit pretty hard.”

Keith winced as he sat up and looked around. "Aw shit," he muttered. "I hope the castle got our distress signal."

"Me too. Otherwise, we’ll need to figure a way out of here,” Lance said seriously, not taking his eyes of Keith. "Let me take a look at your head." He got a little closer to Keith, who closed his eyes and let Lance take a look at his head. "It's bleeding pretty badly… but I think that's just because it's a head wound and those do that…" Lance groaned, frustrated. "I don't have anything to bandage it with, though." Keith brushed him off.

"I'll be fine. Let's focus on getting out of here. Lance was worried about Keith passing out because of the wound and sighed.

"Screw it,” he muttered, taking off his jacket and his shirt. He ripped his shirt into long pieces.

Keith stared at Lance as the younger boy tore his shirt to shreds. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"Getting a bandage for your head," Lance said, not looking up from what he was doing. "Come here.” Under normal circumstances, he would have been flustered, but due to the fact that their lives were at stake, the thought didn't even cross his mind.

Keith didn't really move. He just stared Lance with a blank face. Lance sighed and came closer to him and started to tightly bind his head wound. Keith winced and reach up and grabbed hold of Lance's wrist without really thinking about it. He noticed Lance stopped moving and gently moved his hand.

"Sorry," he muttered. "Are you almost done? We need to get out of here before-"

There was a loud banging noise at the door and both Keith and Lance went quiet. The guard yelled at them to be quiet. Lance resorted to whispering.

"Yeah, we need to get out of here, but how are we gonna do that with no weapons?" he asked, making sure the bandages were holding up on Keith's head.

Keith shook his head gently. "I don't know," he whispered.

Lance faced him. "Are you sure you're okay?" he asked.

Keith nodded slowly. Blood stopped falling on his face and he felt the pressure on the wound from his head. It felt secure. Lance smiled weakly and put on his jacket. “Okay, battle plan time. Should we make a break for it if the door opens?" Lance asked.

Keith fixed him with a weird look, but it only lasted a second. He looked at the door. "I don't know. If we get out of the cell… what then? I have no idea where we are. And red..." he closed his eyes and called out to the lion, but he found nothing. "Red isn't responding to me.”

"We are so royally screwed." Lance sighed. "I doubt they’ll kill us quickly. If anything, they'll use us to get info on the other Lions.” He was scared that this could be the end of the line. He tried to push that thought away, but the feeling remained.

Keith looked at him. "Hey, don't think like that," he said. "We'll find our way out of this... somehow." He put his hand on Lance's shoulder, somewhat hesitantly.

Lance glanced at him and smiled. Part of him wanted to give in altogether and be selfish, since they might not make it out. Instead, he decided to wait until he knew they were done for.

"Yeah, I guess that's not how a Paladin of Voltron thinks. Should we try to fight off the guards when they open the door and run for it? Or lay low?"

“Let’s lay low for now,” Keith said. “We need to plan. If we run, they’ll catch us. And then they might separate us. And in this situation, it’s better for us to not act like me.” He gave Lance a tiny smile.

Lance stared for a moment. "Was that a joke? Did you just try to be funny?" he asked, a teasing smile playing at his lips.

Keith rolled his eyes and sat back. Then they heard the door to the cell being unlocked. The door opened and two galra soldiers looked in at them. Both boys stood up and stared down the galra soldiers. 

"Move weak scum,” one growled, walking to both of them. He started shoving Lance and Keith out of the cell. The technology that was on the wrists were activated again and their hands were tied. They stumbled along, the soldiers shoving them forward every time they slowed down. “Where are you taking us?” Keith asked. He got hit across the face in response.

Lance tried to give Keith a look that said, "don't you dare say anything" to get him to be quiet. Keith stayed silent for the rest of their march. 

Lance was trying tomemorize the halls and any doors that were open, in hopes of finding their weapons or something else that was useful. They passed the landing area for ships and caught a glimpse of the red lion. Lance looked at Keith, who nodded.

“Haggar,” the galra soldier who’d hit Keith said as they walked into a room. “We’ve brought the prisoners, as requested.”

Zarkon’s witch crouched in the middle of the room and looked up. “Excellent. Bring them to me,” she said.

Lance remembered Allura talking about Zarkon's witch and he was pretty certain this was her. She looked very old and her voice was crackly. Lance was certain they were going to be tortured in some way. He and Keith were both shoved forward and then secured to metal plates with feet and hand restraints.

Haggar stepped up to Keith and grabbed his chin in her hand, her long nails digging into his cheeks. He growled and tried to shake her off. “This one will hold up better than the other,” she mused. “We’ll start with him.” Something in her hand started glowing. “I’m going to ask you some questions. I will know if you are lying.”

Lance started to panic. 

"What are you gonna do to him?" he asked, even though he knew he probably wouldn't get an answer. A galra soldier hit him across the jaw.

"Silence!" the witch hissed.

Keith glared at her, defiant. He wouldn’t answer her questions. She could do whatever she wanted to him. “Where are the rest of the lions of Voltron?” She asked in her raspy voice. Keith said nothing and only glared at her. The witch moved her fingers closer together and Keith started the twitch a bit, pain apparent on his face and Lance stared in horror. He struggled to try and get out of his restraints, but they held firm.

"Where are the rest of the lions of Voltron?" The witch asked again with more vigor.

Keith gritted his teeth against the pain, refusing to answer. The pain intensified as the witch twitched her fingers closer. He gasped, trying not to cry out.

It continued longer than Lance ever wanted. He could feel tears well in his eyes and a few fell on his face as he watched Keith being asked the same questions over and over. After what felt like an eternity, there were some alarms that sounded. The witched paused for a moment and scowled. 

"What is going on?" She hissed.

She dropped her hand and stood, and Keith immediately went limp. Lance wanted to crawl over to him, but he couldn't move. "Keith!" he shouted. "Come on, buddy! Answer me! Keith!" Keith didn't move. Lance wasn't even sure he was conscious. And how could he be, after all that? A drone alerted them to intruders on the ship. The witch hissed again.

"Send all guards after them. Do not show them mercy!” she cried. She looked at the two guards next to Keith and Lance. ”Stay here and make sure they don't escape. I will destroy you if they do.”

Lance looked around, panicked. What was going on?! He strained against his restraints. "Keith!" he shouted again. "Come on! Get up!" The guard next to him smacked him across the back of the head, making him see stars. He sobbed. “Keith!"

Just outside the door, he could hear gunfire and other commotion. He fixed his eyes on the door and wondered what was going on. He felt a small bubble of hope that maybe the rest of the Paladins had gotten their distress signal and came to their rescue. 

Soon, however, the noise started to fade, and Lance's small bubble of hope burst, which hurt more than he expected. Suddenly, there was a massive lurch from the ship.


	9. Rescue and Recovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith and Lance were being interrogated onboard the Galra ship. Luckily, the distress signal they sent from the Red Lion just before their capture reached the Castle of Lions. As Keith is healing from the damage he suffered while being tortured, Lance and Pidge have a heart to heart about Lance's feelings for Keith. Pidge, as always, knows all.

Lance would’ve braced himself, but with his hands tied, there wasn’t anything he could do. He squeezed his eyes shut and gritted his teeth. “Keith!” He shouted. The galra soldiers watching over them advanced on Lance, but he didn’t stop screaming at Keith, who still wasn’t moving.

Some more weird moments came from the ship and the soldiers stumbled as the door suddenly opened. It took Lance a second to realize it was Hunk and a few members of the Blade of Marmora that walked into the room and easily took down the soldiers. Lance was so relieved that he laughed.

"Hunk, buddy, you have no idea how happy I am too see you!” he cried..

Hunk started fidgeting at Lance's bonds with a screwdriver. Lance breathed in relief, but then he glanced over at Keith again, who was as motionless as ever. "¡Mierda! Hunk, we gotta help Keith!"

Hunk was already working on Keith's restrains as the Blade members were keeping the room clear. Soon, Keith was free and Lance caught him as he collapsed.

"For the love of everything worth living, Keith, wake up!" Lance said desperately, shaking Keith fiercely. He looked to Hunk, who scooped the red paladin into his arms. "We've gotta get outta here!" he shouted.

Lance stared at Keith. "Keith, buddy, come on! You gotta be okay!"

"Lance, listen, Keith should be fine but we need to get him to the Red Lion as soon as possible. Allura is keeping the Galra busy and Pidge is working on disabling the robot soldiers,” Hunk explained.

"They tortured him!" Lance informed Hunk tearfully. "For like… two hours, I swear. He wouldn't tell them anything and that witch just made it worse. She made him scream and…" his face darkened. "I'm gonna kill her.”

"I'm sure we would all appreciate it if she was out of the picture, but let's save the vengeful thinking for when we’re all safe again,” Hunk replied, still carrying Keith like he weighed nothing. Lance still seethed and hoped he would find his weapon and have a chance to battle that horrible witch.

They made their way toward the red lion, Lance giving Hunk directions as they went. When they arrived, Hunk set Keith on the floor. “He’s gotta wake up!” he said. “We can’t get Red out of here without him!”

Lance panted and looked at Keith. He was still lifeless and Lance couldn't help but check his breathing. He sighed in relief. “Keith! Please! Wake up and let's get out of here! You know I can't pilot Red!" Galra robot soldiers started to surround them and Hunk slowly picked them off with his Bayard.

“Keith!” Lance tried not to cry as the red Paladin continued to be unresponsive. Then he turned and faced the red lion. “I know I’m not your Paladin!” he shouted. “But Keith is hurt and I need to help him!” Red stared at him with unmoving eyes. “Please!” he begged. “I need to help him!”

Suddenly, the Galra drones dropped to the ground. From a distant control room, Pidge hollered in excitement.

Hunk relaxed.

"Get in Red, Lance. See if you can do that weird bounding thing with Red.” 

Lance looked helplessly at Keith’s lifeless form, tears spilling onto his cheeks. “Red! I know I’m not worthy of being your Paladin! You need to help me! Keith is dying! Please!” The lion sat up and roared, then opened its mouth and allowed Lance inside.

Lance sighed in relief and looked at Hunk."I'll take Keith. You are everyone else get out of here! Where are Allura and Coran?"

"The castle is keeping the ship distracted,” Hunk said with a weak smile. “Once you get out, just get to the castle and we will meet up there. I hope Red is nice to you."

Lance nodded and began to move to the Red Lion.

Once inside, he laid Keith gently on the floor, then sat in the pilot’s chair and took the controls. “Let’s get him out of here,” he said. The lion roared and took off, smashing through the bay doors and out into space. Lance tried to maneuver as best he could through the hail of gunfire from the galra ship, but he was worried about being rough and hurting Keith more in the process. Finally, it seemed red decided to take over. Lance let go of the controls and slid to the floor, kneeling over Keith. The red Paladin was pale, and there was a trickle of blood dripping from the corner of his mouth.

Red somehow managed to dodge a lot of gunfire while heading straight to the Altean castle. Lance held onto Keith's torso with one arm, cradling his head as he held onto the chair so they wouldn't go flying. He thought that maybe he should have said something to Keith. Since the red paladin was still not moving, Lance wasn’t positive he would make it. He knew he would regret not saying something.Even though Keith was still unconscious, Lance said quietly, "You know Keith… You’re over emotional and sometimes a real ass, but so help me… I think I love you." Red lurched to the side and Lance tightened his grip on the chair, still holding onto Keith.

Red thundered into the castle and landed, opening its mouth. Lance stood and carefully pulled Keith into his arms. He carried him out of the lion, to where Coran stood waiting. “We need to help him!” Lance said, his voice breaking.

Coran sighed in relief. "Thank the ancients!" Then looked at Keith and his face paled. "Right! To the infirmary! Both of you!" Coran said. Soon, Coran had Keith in a healing pod and he and Lance stood before it.

"That should keep him stable. Lance, get in the Blue Lion and help your fellow Paladins!”

Lance looked at Keith for another long second, then nodded and ran to his lion. He felt at home in Blue, in a way he hadn’t while flying Red. He shot out into space, furiously wiping tears off of his face. Even so, he could feel himself falling apart as worry crashed over him and left him gasping. The only reason he was able to fight as ferociously was because he was furious and worried. He helped fight off Galra ship after Galra ship until Hunk and Pidge came out of the mothership with their lions.

Together they all sped back toward the castle of lions. As soon as everyone was inside, Allura worm-holed away. For a moment, everything was quiet. Lance sat in his lion, hands so tight on the controls that his knuckles were white. Then he scrambled up out of his chair and burst out of his lion, sprinting to the infirmary.

He was easily the first person to get to the infirmary. Keith was still unconscious, to Lance's utter disappointment. He sat cross-legged on the ground and watched, the weird sound of what Lance assumed was the heart monitor pulsed steadily, which gave him some minor comfort. Within ten minutes, Coran and Allura were there, looking at him and Keith. Lance looked behind him. "You need to fix him. Keith saved us,” he said.

Allura looked at Lance for a long time. “Did they hurt you?” She asked.

He shook his head. “No. They started with him...” He took a deep breath. “You need to help him!” He hugged his knees to his chest and squeezed, as if trying to hold himself together.

Allura looked at him for a moment and then nodded.

"Coran, do a body scan and find the damaged areas. We will go from there." Coran immediately went to the control room. Allura went to Lance and knelt down next to him. Lance, even his state of shock, still felt a little flustered when she placed a gentle hand on his back.

"Lance, it will be alright. I don't Keith is in such a critical condition. Please, relax,” Allura said, trying to comfort him.

“I’m trying to,” he said. He took a deep breath. “My wrists are hurt,” he amended after a second. It was true. He’d struggled so much while Keith was tortured that his wrists were rubbed raw and bloody by the manacles. He was only half surprised that he didn't notice his wrists were so mangled. He _had_ been running on adrenaline for the last couple of hours. Allura looked at them and stood up.

"Please rest, I'll fetch some bandages,” She said, turning and walking away. Lance sighed and looked at Keith. Soon, Hunk and Pidge burst in to the room.

“Lance!” Pidge shouted. “Are you okay?!?! What happened?” She grabbed him and pulled him into a hug. “We were so worried about you! When we got the distress signal we…” she sighed. “Thank King Elfor you’re okay.”

Hunk looked like he was about to cry and pulled both of them into a tight bear hug.

Lance looked at both of them and finally cracked a small smile. "I'm really glad you two are alright and got our distress signal. Seriously, we might have been toast if you didn't come."

Pidge looked at Keith. “So what happened?” She asked

Lance stiffened again, not sure if he could explain everything without crying, but he gathered his composure and started talking. “Keith wanted to go look for Shiro and Red swallowed me and forced me to come along. I guess even the lions wanted Keith and me to stop fighting. We wandered in space and tried to talk, but that was when we got attacked." Lance said, figuring that was enough to get the point across.

Pidge nodded. “Red is the ultimate wingman,” she muttered.

Lance glared at her but before he could say anything, Coran came back into the room. “Did you find anything?” Lance asked.

“I did. He’s got a bit of internal bleeding. The witch seems to have broken most of his ribs with her magic, amongst a few other things. A few days in the healing pod should help.”

Lance gave a massive sigh of relief, paying more attention to Coran's words than Pidge's. Keith wasn't going to die. He felt as if a large weight was lifted off of his chest. 

"Thank the ancients." Lance muttered, copying Coran's phrase.

Allura soon returned with bandages for Lance’s wrists. “Let me see,” she said. She gingerly took his hands in hers and turned them over. “These look pretty bad. Is it painful?” Lance nodded, not even trying to flirt with her for once.

Lance didn't feel the desire to say anything stupid, which was a first. He let Allura bandage his wrists and Pidge looked at him smugly, intrigued that Lance didn't try to flirt with Allura like he normally did.

“Go get some rest,” Allura told him when she finished. He nodded and stood, taking one more look at Keith. Then he walked to his room and laid down. He couldn’t sleep though. He was too worried.

He kinda laid around, trying not to think of what just happened, but his train of thought always went back to Keith. It was getting a little obnoxious. Either he worried about Keith or replayed what had happened on Red.. He remembered Keith saying he wanted to tell him something, and how he got emotional when Lance teased him. Now that Lance had a moment to really think it over, hope started to grow in his chest.

He finally fell asleep, and woke up several hours later feeling quite sore. He rolled out of bed and padded down the hall to the infirmary. He sat down next to the healing pod they’d placed Keith inside and leaned against it. He knew Keith wouldn't wake up but he looked up at Keith's floating body and sighed.

"Hey, Keith. I know you can't hear me, but come back soon okay? If I’m exhausted from not being able to sleep, I'm blaming you,” he started. He felt a little stupid talking to him like this, but it helped him feel better. "You can make it up to me by scratching my head until I fall asleep. Or cuddling with me." Lance laughed darkly. "Wouldn't that be nice?"

“That does sound nice,” Pidge said from where she sat in the corner, where she’d gone unnoticed by Lance.

He jumped and glared at her. “Pidge!”

Pidge chuckled. “I’m sorry, I couldn’t help myself. You came in and didn’t notice me so I thought maybe I’d try to scare you.”

Lance glared at her. 'How long were you there?" he demanded. His cheeks were completely red from embarrassment.

Pidge grinned. “Long enough to hear all of that,” she said. “Lance, it’s okay, you know? No one’s gonna judge you for this...”

Lance curled in a ball for a moment, almost as if he was trying to swallow his blatant embarrassment. “It’s not like it actually matters. Things will probably just go back to normal when he wakes up. You're better off pretending you didn't hear that,” he said defensively.

Pidge shrugged. "It doesn't matter to me," she said. "I won't tell him. If you don't want to act on it, you don't have to. I'm not gonna force you to do anything.”

Lance stared at her. "You're not gonna tell him?" he asked.

"No, I am not a matchmaker and I don't plan on doing it. _But…_ I totally think you should tell him." Pidge flashed Lance a grin.

"Do you know something I don't?"

"Lance, I know at least three times as much as you, but yes, I do."

Lance gave her a weird look, then turned back to Keith. "Once he wakes up, he's going to go back to searching for Shiro… I just hope that witch didn't mess up his mind with all of that torture." He sighed. "I don't want to get my hopes up. It's stupid, all of it." He stood.

Pidge made a strange burst of frustrated movement before she sighed and hung her head. These two were impossible and so incredibly stupid. She collected herself and looked at Lance. "It's all in your court, Lance. Logically, it is better to know and be disappointed than to wonder for the rest of your life. If it really is that stupid, then it shouldn't be a big deal either way."

Lance glared at her. "I've been hurt a lot," he said. "I've been let down a lot. If I just… don't act on it…maybe it'll go away. But he wouldn't think that way about me… I don't think…"

Pidge really wanted to hit her head on something. Keith and Lance were so stupidly close to figuring out their feelings for each other it made her sick. "How would you know that unless you ask? For quiznack's sake, you’re trying to talk to him while he’s unconscious!" she sighed.

"Because this way he can't let me down!" Lance shouted, so suddenly that Pidge jumped a little. He looked up at Keith again. "If I talk to him while he's unconscious, I can get it out without getting hurt."

Pidge hung her head a little. "As long as we can be a team, do whatever you think is best. I still think you should tell him, but I want you to do it. Don't worry, I won't tell him." She had also personally promised the same thing to Keith, even though Lance didn't know that. She felt as if she was going to be frustrated with these two forever.

Lance shook his head. "I don't know why I came in here," he muttered. "It's not like it's gonna help him having me sit here with him… " He headed toward the door. "Sorry for yelling at you, Pidge. I'm just stressed out." And he disappeared from the room.

The moment Lance was out of earshot, Pidge grabbed her hair and started to pull it from frustration. "You two are so thick skulled, it's going to kill me,” She groaned loudly then looked up at Keith. “Do us all a favor and just confess. I promise it’ll work out in your favor."

Lance stayed in his room for most of the next couple days, not really talking to anyone. He felt miserable. Any time he did leave, he'd grab some food and head back. Finally, he got a major case of castle fever and decided to go out in his lion. He let Allura know what he was doing, promised he wouldn't go far, and climbed into Blue. The lion immediately lit up as he took the controls and easily flew into the dark reaches of space. As he promised, he didn't go too far from the castle. He just needed a change of pace. Lance figured it would be a good idea to "bond" with his lion. Well, at least talk to it. Maybe it would distract him from Keith.

He flew for hours, just sort of relaxing. By the time he went back, he felt significantly better. He climbed out of his lion and started back toward his room. Halfway there, he ran into Hunk who looked relieved when he saw him.

“Hey, Lance, Keith’s awake!" he said, smiling at Lance.


	10. @TheBlackLion: Could You Not?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now that's Keith's fixed up (for the most part), it's time to get back to business. Shiro's still missing and the lack of a pilot for the black lion is something that can't be ignored anymore. When each paladin tries and fails to bond with it until Keith is the only one left, he feels a deep sense of dread that can only be repressed through swimming apparently.

Lance felt his heart begin to race and he immediately sprinted to the infirmary. He almost crashed into the wall when he finally slid into the room. Keith was on the infirmary bed, looking tired but awake.

“Keith!” Lance cried. Keith looked up at him with a faint smile.

“Dude, don’t hurt yourself,” he said. He winced as he tried to sit up.

Lance breathed and felt a welling of emotion that made his eyes water, but he gritted his teeth. He refused to cry. "I could say the same thing to you. Don't hurt yourself,” he said, utterly relieved to hear Keith speak again. He walked over to him and very carefully gave him a hug.

"I seriously thought you were gonna die,” Lance said quietly.

“Yeah, I kinda thought I was gonna die too,” Keith said. “I don’t really remember all that happened…”

As much as Lance didn't want to, he pulled away. "It's probably a good thing you don't remember. It wasn't very pretty,” he said with a weak smile. "How are you feeling?"

“Crappy,” Keith confessed. “All I remember is the witch and then… I don’t know, it felt like she reached inside me and… ” He winced. “You screamed at me a lot,” he noted.

Lance made a "no duh" motion with his arms. "Uh, yeah. I was freaking out the whole time. I was worried she was going to kill you if kept being so damn stubborn. I watched her torture you for what seemed like forever."

“I’d never give Voltron up. No matter what they did to me,” Keith said. “Coran said I had some internal bleeding too… and the cut on my head.” Keith winced, suddenly remembering the cut and the whole business in the cell with Lance’s shirt.

“That was pretty cool what you did back there. Definitely heroic. Better than what I was able to do for sure,” Lance said, not caring if it seemed out of character that he was praising Keith.

Keith frowned at him. “Maybe, But it’s not like you were given the option to be heroic. And believe it or not, I’m glad they singled me out over you. I don’t think I could stand watching that happen to you.”

Lance looked away, blushing lightly. "Yeah. . . there was a reason I was screaming your name non-stop." He realized how weird that sounded and shook his head. "I mean, trust me, it wasn't easy for me to watch and do nothing,” he corrected.

Keith chuckled a little. “So Hunk told me you flew Red,” he said after a second.

Lance looked back at Keith. “Sorry… I didn't have much of a choice. And Red just kinda took over after a little bit. I hardly flew.”

“Don’t apologize,” Keith said. “You saved my ass.” He shifted a little. “I think it’s awesome that Red let you do that. You must’ve done something to prove yourself.”

Lance slowly nodded. "Well, we had to get out and you were unconscious. I'm just glad Red let me in. Well… us in. You were there too,” he corrected. He didn't really feel like he proved anything. He just did what he knew was right.

Keith nodded. "I guess so. But still, Red doesn't let just anybody fly him. He's picky." Lance resisted the urge to mutter, 'yeah so are you'. He just nodded. "Either way," Keith continued. "It means a lot to me. I'm sorry I got you into that situation…" he blushed. “And…"

Lance looked at him a little expectantly. He smiled gently. "And?" he urged.

Keith looked down, turning even brighter red. “I’m uh… I’m sorry about what happened on Red… before…” he shook his head. “I don’t know what came over me,” he continued after a moment. “It wasn’t me.”

Lance felt as if he was gonna get something good and instead, felt that dropping disappointment which he tried to hide. “Yeah… Makes sense, I guess. It's fine,” he said, his voice flat.

Keith wrung his hands in front of him. “I’m sorry I dragged you through that…” Lance nodded, not knowing what to say. “And I’m sorry for worrying you… back there with Haggar…”

Lance decided to swallow his hurt feelings and just enjoy the fact that Keith was being nice to him. He sat down next to him and placed his arm gently around Keith's shoulders. "Hey man, listen. I know we had some weird things happen but I'm gonna be clear. It’s totally fine. I just wanna stay buddies. We can forget all the weird stuff that happened if you keep being so nice to me.

Keith felt disappointed. There goes that, he thought. He bit his tongue. “Yeah, I’ll do my best. But… I’m the loner. It’s kinda my job to be an asshole…”

Lance shrugged. "I'm kinda used to you being like that, but if you have the capability to be nice like this every once in awhile then… I can take it. I might be an asshole to you too. Just laugh at it, okay?” Lance said lightheartedly. He was sad that Keith didn't mean any of the hints he picked up, but it was better than not being friends at all. He would take this over that any day.

Keith nodded. “Yeah, I can try to do that.” He leaned back. “This sucks…”

Lance raised an eyebrow. "That you have to be nice to me?" he teased gently.

Keith wasn’t amused. “Every time I close my eyes I can see her,” he said. “Zarkon’s witch, asking me that same damn question… crushing me from the inside…” he winced. “Sorry,” he said after a second. “I know it wasn’t easy for you either.”

Lance felt his insides freeze as Keith explained himself. "Maybe we should Coran see if there is any Altean healing magic or whatever that can help with PTSD…” Lance suggested.

Keith shook his head. “If there was they would’ve shared it with Shiro,” he said. “But they didn’t.”

Lance faltered. "I guess that’s true. I hope it goes away eventually…" he said, not sure what else to say.

Keith sighed. "So what now?" he asked.

Lance looked at him and offered a weak smile. ”We could drown our problems away with training?" he offered. "Or eat some food. You’re probably hungry after all that.”

Keith nodded. "I am pretty hungry," he said. Then he looked at Lance and a weird look melted over his face. "Are you okay?"

Lance perked up. "Yeah! Totally good. Let's get you some food. I'm certain Hunk would be over the moon if we asked him to make us food.” He hoped Keith would forget whatever face he’d made while thinking of how to hide his feelings until they went away.

Keith stared at him. Lance was most definitely not 'totally good' but Keith didn't want to press. He let Lance help him out of bed, an event by the end of which had both of them blushing, but neither noticed the other's rosy cheeks. The two of them made their way to the kitchen where Hunk happily made them food.

A few weeks later, they were both on good terms, though they both struggled to hide their feelings sometimes. The war continued and they all fought together and tried to spread peace. Keith continued to search for Shiro, to Lance’s annoyance. He wanted Shiro back too, but it still rubbed him wrong.

Finally after Keith exploded at a gathering for freedom fighters about not being able to form Voltron, Allura decided to that it was time to find a new Paladin for the Black Lion.

They each took their turns. Keith crossed his fingers when Lance climbed in, praying that it wouldn't be him. Being the head was dangerous and it seemed those paladins liked to disappear. When Lance came out looking dejected, Keith's spirits rose, but then immediately fell as he realized who would go next.

Lance was honestly disappointed he was not chosen by the Black Lion. He always thought being the leader would be cool and he always liked the look of the Black Lion, but he knew it wasn't for him."It's your turn Keith,” he said with a weak smile.

Keith nodded, though he really didn't want to do it. He climbed up into the lion, sat in the chair, and begged it not to choose him. The lion stood up and roared, then knelt and opened it's mouth. Keith took a second to calm down so that when he went back to the ground he wouldn't scream in everyone’s faces, then stood.

Lance smiled as Keith came out of the lion. He reached out and patted his shoulder."As much as I hoped it was me, I'm really glad the Black Lion picked you, leader,” Lance encouraged. He could tell that Keith wasn't too excited about it, but figured he would at least help him feel proud. Pidge and Hunk also smiled brightly and offered their congratulations and support.

Keith nodded, trying not to look crestfallen. He didn't want this responsibility. He couldn't replace Shiro. "Thanks guys," he said. He turned and looked at the lion. "I'm gonna… go…" he said, pointing over his shoulder at the door.

Lance watched, concern and curiosity filling him as Keith started to leave. No one stopped him and Lance looked at the other two.

"Does anyone else get the feeling that Keith’s not really happy about this?" Hunk asked slowly.

"Add one vote to that thought too,” Lance agreed.

"Hopefully the more he gets used to the idea, he'll find more confidence,” Allura interjected.

Lance sighed. "Man, this sucks…”

Pidge looked at him. "Have you talked to him yet?" she asked.

Lance looked at her, a little annoyed. "Talk about what?" he asked.

Pidge flicked her eyebrows up once. "Nothing," she said. "I assumed the two of you still had some things to work out, but I must've been wrong.”

Lance glared at her. "Yeah. Everything's fine."

"We will have to find a new Paladin for the Red Lion…” Allura murmured. 

"Why don't you try the Red Lion, Allura?" Hunk suggested.

Lance was kind of glad Keith didn't hear that suggestion. Keith and Red had an important connection, and Lance was sure Keith was just as daunted by the idea of losing Red as he was by the idea of piloting the black lion. "I'll give it a try," Allura said, though she looked unconfident.

Lance decided to stick around to see Allura get in the Red Lion and come out disappointed again. After they decided that they would have to look for a new Paladin, Lance decided to casually look for Keith. He didn't want to look like he was looking for him, but wanted to run into him and maybe hang out a little if he was lucky.

Lance ended up pacing around the hall for a little while. Then he got bored and decided maybe he'd go relax in the pool for a little while. He grabbed his trunks, and made his way there. He entered the room and jumped into the pool with a splash. He always liked the water. It was calming and reminded him of home. It was probably why he and Blue worked well together. He tried to relax until he heard the door open. He looked up and his heart rate rose a bit when he saw that it was Keith who entered.


	11. Everything Is Worse When The Elevator Won't Work

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith needs to cool off, but when he gets to the pool, Lance is there. Of course, fighting ensues because these two just can't seem to get along. But when they get caught in the elevator, Keith pushes Lance a step too far.

Keith stopped short upon seeing Lance in the water. Part of him wanted to turn around and walk out. But he couldn't very well do that… he set his towel on his chair and pulled his shirt up over his head.

Lance dove into the water when Keith started to take off his shirt so he could hide and to try to calm down his warm face. He prepared to be chill and to try and stay composed no matter how attractive Keith might look. After a moment, he popped his head out of the water. 

"Hey Keith!" he said lightheartedly.

Keith tossed his shirt to the side and dove into the water without a word. He stayed underwater long enough that Lance started to panic, thinking maybe he'd hit his head. But then he popped out of the water right in front of Lance with a quiet, "boo".

Lance jumped. Then he realized it was Keith. "Are you trying to give me a heart attack?!" he yelped.

Keith chuckled a little. "Sorry," he said. "Just wanted to see if I could spook you." He rolled over in the water and floated on his back, eyes closed. Lance stared. He couldn't help it. Keith looked so relaxed....

"Well, you got me this time, but next time won't be so easy,” he explained.

Keith smiled, but there was something a little forced about it, Lance noticed. It vanished quickly. "Hey man, are you okay?" he asked. Keith didn't answer and instead quickly disappeared under the water again.

This time, Lance braced himself for Keith to pop out. He waited for a little bit for Keith to pop out of the water. When he didn't, he started looking for him again. "C'mon. If you’re trying to kill yourself, don't do it in front of me.”

Keith stayed under water for a long time. He hadn't really come to the pool to be interrogated by Lance and he didn't want to show him how upset he really was. Finally, he needed to breathe and broke the surface.

Lance was starting to get worried when Keith finally popped out of the water again. Lance waded over to him and but Keith avoided him, which hurt more than Lance wanted to admit.

"What gives?" Lance asked.

"Sorry, I'm just..." Keith closed his eyes for a second. "Stressed out..."

Lance didn't want to but… "Even though I was totally here first, I can leave."

"No, that's okay," Keith said. "I'll be outta here soon. I just needed to swim for a minute and… get my mind off of some stuff.

"You don't have to leave if you don't want to,” Lance blurted. "I mean, I'm the most relaxing guy to be around. I'm just as chill as the ice powers Blue has.”

Keith rolled his eyes. “It’s not a big deal,” he said. “I didn’t mean to intrude. I’m sure you have plenty to think about too… I’m just… I don’t know. I don’t like that the black lion chose me…”

"Yeah I know,” Lance said. Keith looked at him strangely. "I mean, I can tell. You didn't seem too happy."

Keith sighed. “I just don’t think I can lead Voltron… it’s not… I’m not the best at leading…” he sank underwater again, but didn’t stay there quite as long this time.

Lance watched until Keith came out of the water. "Well, there’s a reason the Black Lion picked you. So… maybe it's best to trust its decision. I know you suck at talking and everything but you know how to fight at least.”

Keith looked at Lance irritatedly. “Thanks,” he said sarcastically. He swam over to the edge of the pool and pulled himself out of the water. He grabbed his towel and quickly rubbed it through his hair. “Sorry for bothering you,” he said

Lance sighed and followed him, scrambling out of the water and grabbing his own towel. "Hey hey hey! Where do you think you're going? You are _not_ bothering me. Believe it or not, I _like_ hanging out with you."

Keith tried to ignore him and tossed his towel over his shoulder and started toward the elevator door. Lance grabbed the towel and yanked it out of Keith’s hands.

“What is your problem?” he asked Keith, who glared at him.

“Give me my towel back!”

"Can't you just chill and have without getting sensitive about everything?" Lance said, annoyed. He immediately regretted his words. "No, wait, I didn't mean it like that.”

Keith didn’t say anything. He turned, without his towel, and started walking away.

“Keith, wait!” Lance said. Keith kept walking. He ran after him. Keith stepped into the elevator and Lance barely made it in before the doors shut.

"Seriously, what's your problem? Every time I try to help, I get this cold shoulder and it's getting old,” Lance said throwing a towel at Keith.

Keith let the towel hit him and then fall to the floor. “You mean every time you insult me I stop talking to you?” he asked. “Because that’s just me removing myself from the situation before I say something I might regret.”

"I don't mean to insult you! I'm just teasing. You do that to me all the time. Kinda unfair if you can tease me but I can't tease you,” Lance pointed out.

 

“Do I look like I’m in the mood to be teased right now?” Keith snapped. He took a deep breath and ran his hand through his wet hair. He turned away from Lance. “Just leave me alone, would you?”

"You know what?” Lance said. “Fine! I'll leave you alone. Whatever." He went to open the elevator doors, and they didn't open. He didn't feel the elevator moving. "C'mon stupid door. Open,” he hissed, pressing the ‘open’ button comically fast.

Keith glared at him. "That's not gonna help!" he snapped. Lance didn't stop so Keith grabbed his wrist and yanked it away from the button. "You're gonna break it!"

"I think it’s already broken! The elevator isn't moving and the buttons aren't working. If you don't believe me, you try it!" Lance half yelled and stepped away. He really hoped the elevator didn't work just so he didn't look like at idiot.

 

Keith had a pretty good idea of what was going on, but he said nothing as he stepped forward. He poked at the button for a second, then tried to pull the doors open. "Damn it, Pidge," he muttered under his breath.

Lance heard him. "Pidge? What does Pidge have to do with this?" He asked, confused. "Please don't tell me we’re stuck."

“We’re stuck,” Keith groaned. He hit the door. “God damn it!! I’m sick of this!”

Lance sighed. "Why do I always have to get stuck with you when you’re in a bad mood? This would be a lot better if you weren’t freaking out like usual,” he said bluntly, not realizing that it would annoy Keith.

Keith gritted his teeth. He wanted so badly to punch Lance. He clenched his fist at his side for a second then turned to Lance. “At lease you’re not stuck with the most obnoxious god damn person in the universe,” he snapped.

Lance could feel how angry Keith was and he wanted to yell. He almost did, but instead bit his tongue. "Fine. Be that way,” he hissed, sitting down against the wall. I don't care anymore. I'll be here in my corner and I won't talk to you.”

“Thank god,” Keith said. He stood and looked around for a second before he started picking at the control panel for the elevator with his knife.

“What are you doing?” Lance asked.

“I thought you weren’t talking to me,” Keith said back.

“I’m getting to that… but I don't want you to get electrocuted. Last time I checked you are not an electrician. Electrician? Do Alteans use electricity?" Lance wondered out loud.

“Shut up, Lance,” Keith said. He pried the panel off and looked inside. “Damn it… There’s nothing wrong in here. Which means _someone_ manually shut it off.” He glared at the ceiling.

"You think it’s…" Then Lance went quiet. He made an annoyed face at Keith and then looked away. Keith looked at him, still angry, but he also felt a little guilty for taking his frustration out on Lance again.

Keith glared at Lance for a second then sat down on the floor with a loud thump. He leaned his head back against the wall. “This isn’t funny, Pidge!” He yelled.

Lance placed his hand on his cheek, deciding Keith had finally lost it and that he must be crazy for loving a lunatic like him. Lance decided he must be some kind of masochist.

“Quit staring at me,” Keith snapped after a moment. “There’s nothing wrong with the elevator and the only person on this ship that could make it stop is Pidge.”

Lance just let Keith freak it, not looking at him or talking to him. He started to get more sad than angry and sighed. He tried to be patient but he was getting antsy.

Keith stopped talking and started playing with his knife, twisting it in his hands and examining the blade. He started to shiver. He was still dripping from the pool and it was getting cold in the elevator.

Lance kept glancing at Keith, even though he was pissed. He had both towels since Keith didn't catch his and he started to notice Keith shivering. He looked at him and held out the towel, offering it to him.

Keith didn't notice.

Lance rolled his eyes and threw the towel at him. Keith glared. "What was that for?" he snapped.

"So you don't freeze to death. And you call me the idiot,” Lance muttered before he went back to ignoring Keith.

Keith stared at the towel on the floor for a few minutes, but finally he got cold enough that he reached out and grabbed the towel and wrapped it around himself. He wanted to say something rude to Lance, but he didn't know what. He glared at him, wondering if he could set him on fire with his stare. Lance could see that Keith was glaring daggers at him and he seriously wondered what he did wrong this time. Lance sighed, not able to take the tension anymore.

"Why do you hate me?"

"I don't hate you," Keith said immediately. "Why would you think I hate you?” Lance opened his mouth but Keith cut him off. "I just wish you'd learn to know when to shut your mouth. I'm sick of you telling me I'm sensitive or… 'freaking out as usual’…" He glared. "I'm just tired," he finally said.

"You sure act like you hate me. It’s always my fault too, from what it sounds like. Either you hate me or tolerate me,” Lance said gloomily.

"Yeah, because you're so much better," Keith said accusingly. "You shouldn't sit there and pretend to be all upset about it. The only reason you care right now is because you had to sit through it while I got tortured. You feel responsible. You shouldn't, because it wasn't your fault, but there's no other reason for you to care. You tolerate me just as much as I tolerate you!" Keith bit his tongue.

Lance's patience disappeared. He glared at Keith. "I only do this shit and tolerate your shitty attitude because I actually care about you and I want you to be happy! Apparently that’s impossible for your thick skull to understand! I don't know why I keep trying. It would be easier if I didn't but I do so here I am, stuck with you yelling at me, telling me how horrible of a person I am." This time, Lance was angry enough that frustrated tears fell down his face before he could stop them.

Keith pulled himself to his feet. He had no idea what to do. He wasn't good at comforting people, especially when he was the reason for their distress in the first place. "I never said you were a horrible person," he said, floundering for something to say. Lance stood up too, but he looked very very mad.

Lance walked up Keith, who backed into the wall. Lance's eyes were on fire as a few frustrated tears fell from his face. Suddenly, he balled his hand into a fist and punched towards Keith. Keith closed his eyes and braced for an impact, but then he didn't feel anything and opened them after hearing a loud crack. Lance had punched the wall next to his face.

Lance glared at him for a long time, looking like he wanted to do something else, but Keith couldn’t fathom what it might be. Then he pulled away and turned his back. “Screw you, Keith.” Keith could feel his heartbeat in his throat but he steeled himself, then looked up at the ceiling. “This isn’t working, Pidge,” he said. “Let us out. It’s not funny.”

Lance moved away from Keith and didn't say anything. He felt a little better emotionally but now he was certain he sprained his hand. He held it softly, his back turned to Keith as he started to move it to figure out where it hurt. He was muttering profanities to himself as he moved his fingers. Keith listened to him for a moment, then stepped forward. “Let me see,” he said, holding his hand out.

Lance looked at him for a moment, hesitating, and then begrudgingly he gave his injured hand to Keith, vowing that he would not miss a punch to Keith's nose if he dared to hurt him.

Keith tried to be gentle as he looked at Lance’s hand. “You’re an idiot,” he said after a few minutes. “It’s not broken, but I think you might’ve fractured it.” Then he looked up at Lance for a second, a sort of daring look on his face. “Does this hurt?” he asked before he pressed down on Lance’s knuckle, sending sharp pain through his hand.

The sharp pain made Lance twitch and he pulled his hand away. At the same time his good hand darted out and punched wherever he could reach. It didn't hurt much, as Keith managed to dodge the blow for the most part. 

"That fucking hurt! You knew I fractured something!" Lance yelped.

Keith caught Lance’s outstretched hand and twisted it behind Lance’s back in a way that was painful, but not as bad at his other hand. Keith held tight to Lance and smiled a little. It actually felt kinda good to have Lance try and hit him. “I know, but I needed to know where,” he said, twisting Lance’s arm a little harder. Lance whined and struggled to break away from his grip but Keith only held him tighter.

Finally, Lance bellowed, "What the hell do you want from me?!" and winced again as Keith twisted his arm some more.

“Come on, Lance,” Keith said. “You want to hit me. I can see it in your eyes like... ninety percent of the time I see you. So this is me encouraging you. Hit me.”

Lance tried to relax. "I don't want to hit you. Just let me go." He was extremely conflicted. He wanted to put Keith in his place but he didn't want to hurt him either.

Keith twisted a little bit harder. “Are you sure about that?” He asked. “Because I’m giving you a chance right now. Turn around and hit me. Maybe then you’ll feel better.”

"If this is your way of making people feel better then you’re more messed up than I thought you were!” Lance hissed though gritted teeth. “Why do you want me to hit you?!"

“Because you clearly want to,” Keith said. He released Lance’s arm, but then shifted him around and slammed him into the wall. “Hit me,” he said.

"I. Don't. Want. To. Hit. You,” Lance said through gritted teeth. Although by this point he was very tempted to. He tried one last tactic. "I don't want to mess up your pretty face,” he said with a dark grin.

"You know," Keith said, pushing Lance harder into the wall, "The last time I said anything remotely like that, you handcuffed me to a chair and screamed in my face. So don't be surprised if it doesn't bother me this time. It also can't be worse than what you said to me last time."

Lance gave a dark smile. "I'm testing your threshold since you don't seem to like it when I say shit like that,” he replied patting Keith's arms out of the way. "I'm sick of fighting you, even if you get high off of it.”

Keith didn't back down. "Lance, I can see it in your face. You want to hit me. So go ahead. You get one free shot."

"Yeah, hit you and you'll knock me down since you have the advantage. I'm not that stupid,” Lance replied. He was starting to feel flustered since Keith was shirtless and cornering him. Every time he tried to be the better man, Keith would only intimidate him more by moving closer.

Keith glared at him. "I won't hit you," he said. "I told you. I'll give you a free shot. I swear I won't hit you back." He shrugged. "I'm just trying to help you relieve some stress," he said. Lance stared at him for a moment, not sure if he should do it or not. It seemed like Keith wanted it and wouldn’t back off. Lance pulled back and punched Keith in the stomach with his good hand as hard as he could.

Keith took the hit as best he could, but Lance hit really hard. He doubled over and gasped, then fell to his knees. He was a little surprised that Lance had actually hit him and he stared at the floor for a few seconds, breathing hard. Then Lance hit him again, this time across the head. He pitched sideways and hit the floor.

This was what Lance was worried about. Now that he had hit Keith once, his anger exploded and he hit Keith again and again and again. All of the frustration and confusion concerning his feelings and Keith's actions became so strong that the dam broke. After a few more hard attacks, Lance finally stopped, tears flowed from his eyes once he realized what he had done. Keith wasn't moving anymore, and he had blood dripping from his nose into his hair, which was splayed around his head on the floor. Lance's eyes widened and he fell to his knees next to the red paladin. “¡Mierda!”

Lance had completely broken, terrified of what he did. He knelt down and made a few motions as if he wanted to hold Keith but was too scared to. Finally, he grabbed him and held him close as tears and blood mixed. "I tried to warn you. I didn't mean to. Oh God. I'm so sorry. Keith, I'm so sorry.”

Lance felt awful, and eventually he couldn't stand to hold onto Keith anymore. He scrambled away from him and curled up in the corner. He didn't want to be near him when he woke up, but they were still trapped in the damn elevator. It took about five minutes for Keith to come to. He groaned and rolled over, holding his hand under his nose, catching blood.

When he came to, Lance watched in horror. Keith was a little stunned when he looked at Lance. "Are you sure that was one hit?" he said, a little distant.

Lance said nothing and curled in on himself and stared at the floor. Keith braced himself on his hands and knees and coughed, spattering blood on the floor, mostly from the bloody nose, which refused to stop. He took another second and then rolled over and sat with his back against the door. His head hurt and his stomach and chest ached. He looked down to find that there were already dark bruises flowering. He glanced at Lance. "Do you feel better?" he asked.

Lance didn't answer for a good minute. ”For a second, yeah. Now I feel worse,” he finally said. He looked up at the ceiling. "Pidge, seriously, let us out,” he begged.

Keith pulled himself off the floor after a few seconds and walked over. "Lance," he said. The brunette flinched. "Lance, it's okay. I pushed you to do it… it's not like it's your fault."

Lance didn't calm down. It scared him seeing exactly how much he hurt Keith. "No, it’s not okay. I shouldn't have done it. I should have stopped after the first one. But I couldn't stop and that’s terrifying. I never wanted to hurt you like that but I did it anyways."

"Hey man," Keith said. He slid to the floor next to Lance and rested his head against the wall. "If it felt good while you were doing it, then that's fine. Sometimes you gotta blow off some steam. This time I don't mind being on the receiving end. Besides, if I remember correctly, I did the same thing to you after Shiro disappeared…" He pressed his hand back to his nose. Blood was still gushing.

"Well, no offense, but you always seem be angry about something. I'm usually fine. But you have a point. But you know, the reason we keep ending up in these situations is because we don't stop fighting,” Lance commented. He glanced at Keith, but looked away."I really didn't want to hurt you. I know you were trying to help but I don't like the fighting at all.”

"Yeah, I got that from the constant, 'I'm not gonna hit you' that you were giving me." Keith chuckled a little. "I gotta give you credit, though. You hit hard when you want to. Though next time if you could avoid aiming for my nose, since we already know I apparently am prone to bad bloody noses."

Even though Keith seemed to be in better spirits, Lance still curled up with his knees to his chest and arms around his legs. He buried his face in his legs. "You honestly thought I planned on that?" he said, defeated.

"I don't know," Keith said with a tiny smile. "I think I passed out before it started bleeding so I can't really tell what was going through your head." Keith looked over at him. "Come on, man, it's okay. It needed to be done."

 

Lance didn't answer. He really felt like it wasn't needed. All Keith needed to do was to calm down. Or be nice. There was no need for violence between friends. Lance selfishly wanted a hug or something from Keith, but his pride and fear made him keep his mouth shut.

Keith stared at him for a second. "I really messed up, didn't I?" he asked after a second. Lance looked up at him uncomprehendingly. "I shouldn't have pushed you to do that. I figured… maybe you'd feel better afterwards. I know I always feel better after going at it with the training bots for a few hours… and that… what you did just now… it really cleared my head."

Lance perked up. "Really?" He asked curiously. Then he shook his head in disbelief and stared at Keith.

"You mean to tell me getting beat up is a good way to clear your head and to calm down? Seriously?!" he asked dramatically.

“Well… despite the fact that my head hurts really badly now, I do feel better," Keith said. He shook his head. "Either way… it wasn't cool of me to push you to do that. I'm really sorry."

Lance nodded. "Yeah, I'm really sorry too… for going overboard."

Suddenly, the elevator started moving again. “ _Are you kidding me?!_ That's all we had to do?!" Lance cried out.

Keith frowned at the ceiling. "Pidge locked us in here so we could try to kill each other? That doesn't make any sense.”

Lance closed his eyes. "Maybe she didn't do anything and some system just went haywire…"

Lance sighed loudly, clearly annoyed. Then he composed himself. "Well, I guess sorry really is the magic word. And beating you up helps you not be aggressive."

Keith grinned, happy to see that Lance was smiling. Then Lance stepped forward and pressed some cloth to his nose. "Here," Lance said. "Hopefully this will help the bleeding." He took Keith's hand and guided it up to the fabric and held it there for a second. Keith tried not to blush as he took hold of what he, upon returning to his room, realized was Lance's shirt.


	12. How Often Do You Ask People How Often They Get Hugs? Seriously, Man.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pidge is really good at giving advice, Hunk is good at getting blood out of clothing, and Keith is really good at... well... certainly not connecting with people.

They parted ways to get dressed. Lance felt as if the whole ordeal was planned and unnecessary. However, he did learn that Keith calmed down when he was put in his place. “Kinky," he muttered with a smile then spasmed when he realized what he thought, incredibly grateful no one could see his whole face turn red.

Keith walked back to his room in silence, still holding Lance's shirt to his nose. Halfway there, he passed Hunk. "Whoa, what happened? Are you okay? Are we being attacked? Do I have time to have a snack?" Hunk asked.

Keith shook his head. "Lance and I got stuck in the elevator."

Hunk looked surprised. "Why is it that bad stuff happens to you and Lance when you’re together?” he asked.

Keith shrugged. “I don’t know,” he said. “Anyways, I’m gonna go try and get my nose to stop bleeding.”

Hunk nodded. “Is that Lance’s shirt?” he asked.

Keith looked down at the now blood soaked T-shirt. “Oh my god.”

"I think that’s Lance's favorite shirt. Back at the Garrison he always talked about how much he loved the color and the fit,” Hunk said. "Man, that's pretty impressive.”

Keith looked at the shirt guiltily. It was covered with blood, and he didn’t know if he’d be able to get it out. He pulled the shirt away from his face, and staunched what little blood flow there was with his wrist. “Damn it,” he said.

"Here, let's get you cleaned up and I can show you how to get the blood out,” Hunk offered. “It's still fresh so I think we'll be fine. I bet Lance was willing to let it get ruined if he gave it to you and didn't say anything about it."

Keith nodded and followed him into his room. Hunk gently washed the blood off of Keith's face, then briefly looked at the bruises. “So… how did getting stuck in the elevator cause this?"

Keith sighed. “We were in the elevator and it got stuck. We got talking and… Let's just say I am a terrible communicator and I pushed Lance too far,” he explained

"Pushed him too far… oh… so he did that?" Hunk asked, gesturing. Keith nodded and Hunk sighed. "I wish you two would just get along. I know it's difficult, but can’t you find some common ground?”

"Even Lance says that but, I don't know, something about the way he talks sets me in edge. But then I'm not always really nice to him. It's not that I want to fight with him, it just. . . . . happens. Still, I think having him do this helped me as much as it helped him.”

Hunk looked at him strangely. "Having him beat the crap out of you helped you?" Keith nodded. “Okay… but how?"

Keith tried to explain it without sounding weird. "I don't know… It kinda cleared my head. Like, my anger blinds me but when I train hard or get destroyed in a fight it clears that blind anger, I guess."

Hunk nodded. "That makes sense," he said. "It brings you back down?" Keith nodded. Hunk took Lance's shirt from his hands and set it in the sink. He filled it with cold water, telling Keith about how hot water will set the blood and make it impossible to get out. Keith watched him, a little intrigued. Why did Hunk know so much about getting blood out of clothes?

Hunk worked but also saw the relief in Keith's face as the blood easily got out of the shirt. He smiled and then paused for a moment. “Keith, have you noticed Lance has been acting a little different?" he asked.

Keith nodded. “Haven’t we all? With Shiro gone...”

Hunk shook his head. "No, no, no. Like, a _different_ different. I mean, yeah, we’re all stressed but Lance hasn't been flirting with Allura and he is being… less self-absorbed? I don't know. Maybe it's cause I've been around him awhile but something feels different. Not saying it’s a bad difference but still…”

Keith felt his cheeks go hot at that. He looked at the floor. He didn’t want to admit that knowing Lance wasn’t flirting with Allura as much and that others had noticed it made his heart skip a beat.

Hunk looked at Keith with a raised eyebrow. "Uh, Keith? Hello? Did you hear me?" he asked, waving his hand in front of Keith’s face.

Keith focused on Hunk’s hand. “What?” he asked, shaken out of his thoughts.

"Maybe you should rest. You lost a lot of blood and now you’re spacing out.” Hunk chuckled. “Heh, that’s funny ‘cause we’re in space… I was just saying Lance seems a little different, but maybe you’re right. It's just the stress.”

Keith nodded. “Maybe,” he said. He didn’t really know what to think. He thanked Hunk again and walked him to the door, then closed it behind him and turned to the empty room with a sigh. He wrung out Lance’s shirt and draped it over something to dry, then curled up on his bed.

Lance finally decided to grab something to eat and then head to bed. He hoped he’d be tired enough that he would sleep beyond He seriously wondered if Pidge had something to do with the elevator, but it wasn't worth waking her up about. He grabbed a snack and started to exit the kitchen.

“Lance,” Pidge mumbled as he exited. He turned.

“What?” he asked, a little surprised she was awake.

“Are you okay?” she asked, her voice quiet.

Lance paused for a moment before he decided to reply, "Yeah, I'm fine. You should go to your room to sleep."

Pidge didn’t answer for a second. “I didn’t mean to fall asleep here,” she mumbled. “I was… trying to find… some trace of Matt. He’s…” she trailed off, and Lance waited for a moment then walked over to her. She’d fallen asleep again. Lance smiled tenderly and carefully picked her up, cradling her in his arms.

With Pidge in his arms, Lance walked with his food in his jacket pocket to her room. They passed Keith's room on the way and Lance wondered if Keith was really okay with everything that happened. Once he got to Pidge's room, he pushed the button to open the door, carried Pidge into the room andcarefully lowered her onto the bed. When he went to stand up, she wrapped her arms around his shoulders and held onto him. Lance looked down at her to find she was still very much asleep. “Pidge,” he whispered.

Lance was stuck. He didn't want to wake her up again but she was still holding onto him. He finally decided to lay on the bed and see if she would loosen her grip. When he did, she snuggled up to him and breathed softly. Lance felt that obnoxious bubbling of being flustered, but it was different.

Pidge curled up half on top of Lance and settled, soon even deeper asleep than before. Lance looked around for a moment, helpless before spotting Pidge’s headphones next to the bed, just within his reach. He pulled them on and soon quiet music filled his ears. He unconsciously wrapped his arms protectively around Pidge and closed his eyes, his throat suddenly constricting with a feeling of imminent tears.

Lance felt incredibly relaxed, and it surprised him how much tension he was carrying. Tears welled up in his eyes from the rush of relief emotionally. He held Pidge tightly, and thought about Keith. Lance really wished he would hold Keith like this. Even if it wasn't romantic. He felt much better relaxing this than he did beating him up. The thought of Keith laying limp if the floor made the tears fall and he cried silently as he cursed how stupid he’d been.

After about twenty minutes of crying, he felt Pidge shift. He didn’t move, but after a moment heard her voice. “Lance?”

He didn't look at her but he tried to steady his voice. "Hey Pidge. You feel asleep and wouldn’t let go of me,” he said calmly, not wanting to make a big deal about it.

“Oh,” Pidge said. “Sorry. I was dreaming about Matt… when I was little he used to carry me to my room if I fell asleep…” She sniffed and Lance could tell she was trying not to cry. “I thought… for a second when I woke up… that I was at home… and that all of this was just a dream…”

Lance could feel her shaking and he pulled her in close for a hug. “Hey. I’m sorry reality isn't as good as your dream but it's okay. I know I'm not as important as Matt, but I'm still here. Hopefully your dream will become a reality someday."

“You were crying,” she said after a few minutes. “What’s wrong?” Lance bit his lip. He didn’t want to talk about it. But Pidge… well she already knew all of it so maybe…

Lance hesitated a little longer before Pidge continued, “Keith is killing you, huh?”

Lance was too emotionally tired to fight her. "Yeah, he is. I wish I could get over all of this."

“You should tell him,” she said tiredly. “It’ll make both of you feel better.”

Lance chuckled softly. "We can't even be in the same room without fighting. I'll get over it. Someday,” he sighed

Pidge sighed. “Lance,” she said, exasperated. “It’s gonna be better for everyone if you just… you know…”

Lance shook his head. "There were a few times I've flirted with him in a teasing way and he didn't take it well. I don't want to confess and make things more awkward than they already are.”

“Even if he feels the same way?” Pidge asked. She snuggled a little closer, enjoying the warmth.

Lance froze. He didn't really think that Keith would ever really like him back and the thought paralyzed him. "I really would love to think that… But realistically…”

Pidge said nothing. She’d fallen asleep again. Lance laid there for a long time, thinking about what she’d said. Finally, he gently wiggled out from under her and left the room, but not before draping the blanket over her.

Lance hated to admit it, but Pidge's words struck him. What if Keith liked him back? There was a moment he’d suspected it while in Red, but that was quickly erased. Lance never really thought about it deeply and now he couldn't help but wonder what would happen if Keith did like him. What would they do? Lance was completely lost in though as he walked slowly to his room.

He rounded the corner to see Keith in front of his door, about to knock. Lance stopped and watched for a second as he reached out to knock, then drew his hand back. He stood there for a second.

Now with Keith at his door and already on his mind, Lance didn't know what to do. He stared at Keith for a moment as he waited, then figured it would be best to see what he wanted. Lance pretended to come around the corner and approached Keith. 

"Oh, hey." Lance tried to say casually.

Keith jumped. Clearly, he hadn’t known Lance was there. He turned, his cheeks turning a little pink. “Hey!”

Lance was a little surprised, Keith seemed nervous.

"What's up? Is your nose better?" Lance asked.

“Uh yeah,” Keith said, crossing his eyes for a second to look at his nose. Lance tried not to laugh. “I uh… came to give you your shirt back?” He said uncertainly, holding Lance’s shirt up.

Lance was shocked to see it was clean. "Oh! Wow! Thanks! I thought this thing was going to be ruined!" he said with a bigger smile. He stepped closer to grab the shirt.

Keith relinquished it and turned away. “Thanks for lending it to me. Lucky for you, Hunk is good at getting stains out of clothes.” He started to walk away, raising his hand as he went. “See you later.”

Lance was really getting sick of getting excited when Keith wanted to talk to him and then being disappointed when it turned out to be something normal like this. He knew better but he couldn't help it. “Keith, how often do you get hugs?" he blurted out.

Keith froze. "What?" he asked, turning back to face him.

Lance grimaced and blushed, and covered his face. “Never mind. Forget I said anything,” he said quickly and pushed the button to open his room.

"Wait!" Keith said just as the door to Lance's room shut behind him. "Damn it," he muttered. Almost as soon as the door shut, it opened again and Lance poked his head out. "What?" he asked.

Keith froze. He didn't even know what he was going to say, but he was extremely curious about why Lance asked him that question.

Lance looked at Keith and waited, then leaned against the doorframe. "Did you forget what you were gonna say?"

Keith fumbled for something to say. "W-what?" he asked. "What did you just…?" He tapered off.

"Oh? My question? I was just… curious,” Lance said slowly. He was embarrassed but his curiosity kept him from leaving.

Keith nodded slowly, then looked at Lance expectantly. Lance avoided his gaze. "I asked…" he said, feeling rather awkward having to restate his question. "How often you get hugs…”

Keith just looked at him. "Why would you care?" he finally asked.

Lance glanced away and put his hand in the back of his head. “Cause… I don't know. You were saying heavy training or getting beat up helps you clear your head. Well, Pidge cuddled with me- wait! No, uh. Pidge fell asleep so I carried her to her room and she wouldn't let go of me. She thought I was Matt." Lance struggled to explain himself as Keith's eyebrows rose steadily. "Long story short it made me feel a lot better. So, I was wondering if maybe that would help you feel better, since trying to kill yourself feels a little counterproductive.”

Keith felt a little weird. "I'm not trying to kill myself," he finally said. "Getting my ass kicked clears my head. I'm-" Keith stopped, catching himself.

"Look, I get that it helps you but, in the elevator freaked me out but I don't like having you upset and I don't think you do either. I'm no professional but having your ass handed to you doesn't sound healthy,” Lance explained.

Keith nodded. "Yeah, well…" He didn't really know what to say. "I'm just…" he sighed. "I'm used to it…"

Lance looked at Keith, concern growing. "What. . . . Do you mean exactly by "used to it?" Lance asked slowly.

Keith shook his head and turned. "F-forget I said anything," he said. "See you later, Lance.”

"You know, if you wanna talk about it, you can come in and I won’t shut the door,” Lance encouraged, wanting to hear more.

Keith wanted really badly to turn around and go into Lance's room. But... he didn't want to get hurt. He didn't want to get his hopes up. He shook his head. "It's, uh... not a big deal," he said, very obviously lying.

"Sure as hell sounds like a big deal to me. Come on, I'll just listen if that is what you want. I know I suck at not talking but I can try,” Lance offered, motioning his hands and bowing a bit as if he was a host. "After you good sir."

Keith stared at Lance for a long time. So long that the smile on Lance's face melted away. "Come on, man," Lance said after awhile, straightening up. “You don't want to talk? Fine. But…"

"I don't want to dig up my past." Keith said slowly.

Lance looked at him. "I get it. Sounds like you have a dark past but it also sounds like shouldering it on your own isn’t really helping you. I just wanna help, okay?"

Keith stared at him for a few more seconds, then sighed. "Okay," he said, starting back, slowly. "You got me..."

Lance meet Keith's gaze with a smile. He motioned Keith to enter. Once inside, Lance closed the door. He didn't know why he felt so giddy that Keith was willing to talk to him but he assumed it was a signal of trust.

Keith stood awkwardly in the center of the room. "Dude, relax. Stay awhile," Lance finally said. He flopped onto the bed and stretched out. "If you want," he continued, "you could lay on the bed and I'll sit next to it... Y’know! Like a shrink does!"

Keith didn't know if he wanted to glare or smile at Lance, but it did break the tension a bit. He walked over and sat cautiously on Lance's bed. Lance sat up but gave him some space, even though he wanted to be closer.

"So what did you mean?" he asked.

Keith suddenly decided he didn't want to talk about it. "What do you mean?" he asked, avoiding Lance's gaze.

Lance looked confused. "You know… ‘I'm used to it’,” he repeated. "What exactly do you mean by that?"

Keith looked down at his hands, which where clasped in his lap. "Look, Lance... it's not a big deal... It was a long time ago and anyway, it doesn't matter anymore. I didn't even mean to say that, it just... slipped out."

"Look, I don't want to fight anymore. I just want to help but I don't get you most of the time. I want to understand."

Keith was silent for a long time, but for once in his life, Lance was patient. “My, uh... my dad,” Keith finally started. “He had a uh... a drinking problem...”

Lance expected something like that. "Oh. So, angry drunk?”

Keith nodded. “Angry drunk,” he confirmed. “So... I dunno... I guess I... got used to it. He’d... y’know.... if I got too mad or... if he got too mad...” he shook his head. “It’s not like he was a bad guy, he really wasn’t...”

"Is that part of the reason you get so frustrated so fast?" Lance asked. He was leaning in a little, listening intently.

“You mean is my dad the reason I have anger management problems?” Keith asked. “Probably... I don’t know...”

"Did you ever get hugs or whatever from your family?" Lance asked quickly.

Keith stared at him. “Uh... no. Not... not really… It was just me and my dad until he died…”

"Okay, this might sound crazy but it helped me and it might help you. Maybe… You just need a good hug here and there. I know it sounds cheesy but…” Lance offered.

Keith shrugged. “I mean... it’s not like I’ve never been hugged in my life,” he said. “It’s really not a big-“ his voice cut off as Lance suddenly pulled him into his arms and hugged him tightly.

Lance knew if he didn't do it now he would chicken out. Now Keith was in his arms and he held him tightly. Keith stiffened and struggled for a moment until Lance said, "It doesn't work if you don't relax." Secretly, he was relieved that there was no way Keith could see his red cheeks. Keith tried to relax, but he felt really flustered with Lance holding onto him like this. He slowly, carefully wrapped his arms around Lance, and the younger boy held him even tighter. “Lance-“ Keith tried.

Lance didn't know if Keith liked it or not but he wasn't sure if he could let go. It felt relaxing but simulating at the same time. ”Just, let it happen,” he said quietly. He wanted to do more, and was finding it harder to keep at just a hug.

Keith closed his eyes and took a deep breath, then buried his face in Lance’s shoulder, breathing in his scent. It did help him relax, in a way he hadn’t experienced for a long time. The only person in the past several years that had hugged him like this was Shiro... he pulled away quickly. “Sorry,” he said, standing up. “I... I have to go.”

Lance didn't expect Keith to leave so he easily slipped from his arms and Keith got off the bed. "Wait! Keith?!" he called out, worried.

Keith walked to the door and pushed the button to open it. He gritted his teeth against frustrated tears. “I have to go,” he said, his voice unsteady. He swore under his breath. He didn’t want Lance to know how close he was to crying.

Lance was too stunned to respond how he wanted, which was to grab Keith and not let him go. Before Lance could act on his thoughts Keith had already left the room. “…Nice talking to you.” Lance muttered after a moment. He groaned as he flopped onto his bed.


	13. Lance is Jealous and Keith is Stressed, But Hey! At Least Shiro's Back!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith finally comes home with good news. Shiro's back! Lance sees how often the two interact and how close they are and he can't help but feel jealous. Keith sees Lance flirting with everyone and that makes him mad. To make this short, these two are a disaster.

The next day, Lance didn’t show up for breakfast. Pidge looked up at Keith as he entered the room. “Hey,” she said.

He nodded at her. “I’m gonna eat in my lion. I want to look for Shiro.”

Pidge nodded. This was a normal response from Keith. "Have you seen Lance?" she asked as he grabbed some food.

Keith’s blood froze. “Uh, no,” he said, disappointment once again flooding through him. He grabbed a plate of food and started out of the room. “See you later, Pidge.”

Lance was dead asleep, deciding to sleep in so he could try and forget about what happened last night. He was completely confused but also hurt. Despite this, he felt as if something helped, at least a little bit.

Keith sat down in the pilots chair and grabbed the controls. As he did so, his mind flashed back to being tortured by Haggar. He grit his teeth and willed himself to think of something else. He’d been having nightmares about it almost every night since it had happened. He was losing a lot of sleep and was therefore exhausted. He was amazed no one had said anything about the dark splotches under his eyes.

After awhile, Lance knew there was no point trying to sleep anymore so he begrudgingly got out of bed and started to get ready for the day. He walked into the kitchen and Pidge was still there working on something.

“Morning," Lance said sleepily.

"Did you stay up late? It's almost not morning anymore." Pidge asked.

Lance nodded. “Well, you held me hostage for a little while. Then I had to deal with some drama upon returning to my room and I couldn’t sleep. So... sue me.” He looked around. “Where is everybody?”

Pidge looked up. “Allura and Coran are on the bridge looking at some stuff, Hunk is in the training room, and Keith is out looking for Shiro.”

Lance sighed at Keith's name. "Again. Well, at least he isn't trying to kill himself.” He grabbed his food and sat next to Pidge.

“Sorry about last night,” Pidge said. “I didn’t mean to fall asleep in here and hold onto you like that...”

Lance smiled a bit. "Believe it or not it helped,” he responded. "It helped me relax and figure some things out."

Pidge nodded. “That’s good. Did you and Keith figure anything out?”

Lance froze for a minute, then stuttered as he tried to articulate what had happened. "Honestly, I have no clue. I think so? Maybe?”

“Maybe you two could talk when he comes back...” she suggested. “He seemed a little... off this morning. I couldn’t put my finger on it.”

Lance almost laughed. "You almost sound like a broken record. Do you know how many times I've tried to talk to him? I’ll somehow end up being forced to talk to him either way. Especially when we keep getting stuck together."

Pidge smiled a little. “You two will work it out eventually,” she said.

Lance shook his head. “Knowing him? Probably not,” he said.

Pidge sighed. "Okay, maybe not right now but I think everything will be alright eventually. I mean, you could make that go faster by just confessing you like him and get it over with.”

Lance spluttered. “Don’t you dare tell him that!” he hissed.

Just then Hunk came running into the kitchen. “Keith’s back!” He yelled. “He found Shiro!!!!”

Pidge and Lance both stared at him in shock, and the cup that was in Lance's hand dropped onto the floor and shattered, splattering juice all over the floor. For a solid thirty seconds, none of them moved. 

"This isn't a joke right?" Lance finally asked.

Hunk shook his head and ran back out of the room. Lance and Pidge shared a glance and stumbled after him, bolting to the red lion’s hangar. There stood Keith supporting a weak, worn looking Shiro. Keith had tears on his cheeks but he had a huge smile on his face, one that made Lance’s heart thump in his chest. Keith had never smiled at him that way before...

"Guys, I found him. I really found Shiro,” Keith said breathlessly. Lance felt a sticky dark feeling consume him. Still, he was relieved to see Shiro.

Allura and Coran came running into the room very soon afterwards. They took Shiro to the infirmary where they got him some food and drink and asked him to tell them what had happened. He explained how he’d found himself on a galra ship, and how he had escaped and flown alone for a week, with no food or water. They put him in a healing pod to take care of everything else that was wrong with him. Keith never left Shiro’s side.

Lance was really happy that Shiro was back. Everyone seemed more relaxed, but every time he saw Keith, Lance felt sour. The longer Shiro was back, the more Lance was convinced that Keith actually liked Shiro, or at least cared more about Shiro than him. As much as Lance did everything to forget about it, he still felt disappointed.

It took them a little while to get back into the groove of things. Keith constantly pestered Shiro to try to fly the black lion again, but it refused him. Finally, Lance’s feelings of uneasiness grew too much to bear and he found himself outside of Keith’s bedroom.

Lance wanted to talk to Keith and Pidge kept insisting on it. She was the only one who seemed to notice Lance’s ever-worsening mood. Lance, however, didn't even know what to talk about. He stood at Keith’s door trying to get the nerve to knock. Finally, he quickly knocked on the door, and stepped back a little when Keith answered. Lance stepped inside without really being invited. “Hey man,” he said. “I’ve been doing some math...”

He started to tell Keith everything that was on his mind. He had been thinking that ever since Allura took the Blue Lion and Lance took the Red Lion, he wasn't sure what to do now that Shiro was found. "There are five Lions and six Paladins. If my math is right, that means we have one too many Paladins."

“Solid math,” Keith said with a slow nod. He didn’t like where Lance was taking this. He was disappointed that this was all he’d come to talk to him about and that his only reason was because Keith was the leader now. He waited for Lance to continue.

"So, I was thinking. Now that Shiro is back he can take the Black Lion again and… if that happens… you'll want Red back. Allura has been progressing much faster than anyone else. You want your best fighters on the front line. So, maybe. . . . . It’s best if I step down,” Lance explained.

Keith stared at him. “What are you talking about?” he asked. “You’re vital to the team. We need you. The sharpshooter, whatever you want to call it... just... stop focusing on who flies what.” Lance nodded and turned to leave. “And Lance...” Keith said. The brunette turned and Keith panicked. “…leave the math to Pidge.”

Lance looked at Keith and smiled weakly. He wanted to stay with Keith, but anytime he thought that he couldn't help but think Keith would rather be with Shiro, which made his heart ache. He looked at him. "Thanks for the comfort.”

Keith looked sad. “Yeah...” he said. “No... no problem.” He held eye contact with Lance while the door closed. Then he sat down on the floor, burying his face in his hands.

Lance sighed in disappointment as he slowly walked to… anywhere really. Lance couldn't help but think that Keith was probably waiting for him to leave so he could go sit with Shiro in the infirmary.

As the days passed, Keith spent more and more time with Shiro and Lance was having a hard time stomaching it. He started flirting blatantly with every girl he encountered. He wasn't even sure why he was doing it. It didn't make him feel any better about it afterwards. He even tried to flirt with Pidge one, which ended with him getting a bruise and a lecture.

Keith noticed Lance flirting more and it made him feel sick to his stomach. He started throwing himself into his training with the blade of marmora.

Lance felt terrible, but the reason he started to flirt more was partially because he was trying to get over what he thought were unrequited feelings, but even worse, he wanted to see Keith's reaction when he flirted with other people. He secretly hoped it would make Keith jealous, even though he knew it didn't matter. What made matters worse was Keith was now always gone doing missions with the Blade. Not only did Lance never see him, but he was always worried he would come to the castle with bad news.


	14. Keith Is SUPER Attractive When He Cries

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes Keith and Lance seem to forget that they're fighting in a war. When Keith has a close brush with death, it hits him hard and sends him sobbing to his room. Lance seems to sense that something is wrong and shows up at Keith's door. Then Lance makes a decision that he instantly regrets that could ruin their relationship forever.

Then the incident with Regris happened and Keith came back to the ship, shell shocked and upset. He listened to Allura’s lecture and immediately retreated to his room, locking the door behind him.

Lance ran into Keith as he stormed to his room. Lance looked back at him, surprised he was back but he was obviously upset. Now that Shiro was leader, Keith was around even less. Lance was tempted to talk to him and see what was up, but he was nervous to do so.

Keith laid down on his bed and started to cry. He didn’t want to but... the weight of watching a teammate die, then almost dying himself. It was a lot.

Lance couldn't help but wind up at Keith's bedroom door. He stared at it but couldn't find the nerve to knock on the door. He could swear he could hear crying, unless it was his imagination.

Keith curled up on his bed, clutching the blankets. Lance finally gathered the courage to knock on the door. He didn't expect a response, let alone to be let in, but he figured he would at least try. Keith did not respond. He buried his face in the pillows and clenched his teeth, sobbing. Lance tried again. "Hey, Keith. Are you alright? Can I come in?" he asked softly, just loud enough that Keith could hear.

“Go away, Lance!” He yelled into the pillow.

Lance sighed, expecting something like this. "I get it if you don't want to see me, but if you want a listening ear or… A hug… I’ll be in my room,” he said quickly. He waited a moment before leaving

Keith threw himself off the bed and stumbled to the door. He braced his forearm on the wall. “Lance!” He shouted through the closed door.

Lance was starting to walk away but he heard his name and he turned around. He was back at Keith's door faster than he cared to admit. "Yeah?!" he asked.

Keith bit his lip and struggled for words. “I uh... I think I could use a hug right about now...” He didn’t move though, and the door was still locked

Lance felt his heart go to his throat. It took a moment to speak. "Y-yeah man. But I can't really do that if there is a door between us,” he said with a weak chuckle.

Keith looked at the door hopelessly for a minute. "I know," he said, his voice miserable.

Lance leaned on the door. "Can you open it? It's locked on my side,” he explained. He knew Keith was right there and it bugged him that the door was between them.

"I know," Keith said again, even more miserably. "Lance... I.... I don't want to hurt you... If I let you in..."

"I don't care. Just let me in okay? You… Sound like you are gonna break down." Lance pressed his fists on the door. "Just let me in."

“ _Gonna_?” Keith asked, tears once again dripping down his face. “Lance, one of my team members died today. Right in front of me.” He laughed, humorlessly, the laugh a half choked sob. “Hell! I almost died today! I’m a little past _gonna_ break down!”

Lance paused for a moment. His stomach filled with dread as he realized Keith almost didn't come back.

“Keith, I'm begging you, open this damn door,” he cried.

Keith fell against the door and slid to the floor, sobbing, his hands clenched into fists. “I can’t do this anymore!” he sobbed.

"You don't have to if you just open the door, Keith! I don't care if you beat me up or whatever, just let me help you! Just open the door!" Lance was on the brink of tears from frustration and fear.

And suddenly the door unlocked, though Keith made no move to do it. It slid open and Lance almost fell into the room since he was leaning against it. He quickly found Keith kneeling at the wall, his forearms braced against it, hands clenched into fists. He was sobbing, heartbroken, terrified sobbing, the kind of sobbing from someone who thought they were going to die but suddenly found themselves alive, relieved and terrified, and then finding they’d lost something much more valuable, tears soaking his face.

Lance wrapped his arms around him, not caring about what happened the last time he gave Keith a hug. His arms wrapped around Keith's chest and he placed his face onto Keith's back. "I'm so sorry Keith. I'm so sorry,” he whispered.

Keith sobbed. It was almost like he didn’t notice Lance was there at all. Lance could feel his breath through his back, and each sob shifted them both forward a little. Lance tightened his grip. Keith sobbed.

Lance let Keith sob, that is until he pulled him away from the wall to settle on Lance's chest. Lance held him tightly, willing to wait it out until Keith couldn't cry anymore

Keith felt as though it would never stop. Every time the tears started to slow, he’d once again relive the explosion and those few minutes floating alone in space and it would send him back over the edge.

After what seemed like forever, Lance finally tried to calm down with words. "Hey, it's okay. It's gonna be okay. Try to stop crying, I'm worried you'll die of dehydration." Keith still cried and Lance moved so he was forced to look at him. “Keith, hey, try to calm down. I don't want you to run dry of water,” he said tenderly.

Keith suddenly found himself very close to Lance, and his heart throbbed, sending pain through his chest and more tears to his eyes. He clenched the back of Lance’s shirt in his hands. He was still crying, but he wasn't sobbing, which relieved Lance a bit.

"That's a little better. It's okay. I'm here." He continued to comfort him. Keith was so close to him, he could feel his resistance breaking.

Keith felt Lance move his hands to cup his face. Lance’s thumbs slid gently over Keith’s cheeks brushing tears away. Keith finally locked eyes with him and a shiver went up his spine. Lance was honestly surprised that his touch was working. When they locked eyes, Lance felt the overpowering desire to lean forward. "Do you like that?" Lance asked breathlessly.

Keith stared at him, uncomprehendingly.

They looked at each other for a moment. Lance felt a strong urge to be closer to Keith and he felt the fear began to melt away. He was worried he would never get this chance again. If he was going to be burned with rejection, he would do it with with glorious flames.

"Damn you for being so attractive when you cry,” he whispered. He closed his eyes and leaned forward to Keith's lips.

Keith struggled for breath as Lance caught his lips with his own, pulling him gently forward. Heat rushed to Keith’s cheeks as his heart began to race. He’d never tasted something as sweet as Lance’s lips before. He was frozen, unsure of what to do. Lance’s lips turned salty as tears caught in the corners of Keith’s mouth and slid across their lips. As quickly as Lance started kissing him, he stopped, pulled back with a look of embarrassed horror, then turned and fled the room.


	15. Finally, We Are Getting Somewhere

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance is feeling really bad for kissing Keith out of nowhere, but he really couldn't help it. As soon as Lance decides to tell Keith how he really feels about him, Keith vanishes, heading back to work with the Blade of Marmora for an important mission. Then, Keith almost dies, Red decides to play ultimate wingman (and Momma Lion) one more time. Stuff happens. Maybe these boys have a chance after all.
> 
>  
> 
> Kissing, kissing, kissing, kissing, kissing, I'm so proud.

Now that Lance finally had a few brain cells working after that intense moment, he realized what he’d done and what he’d risked. Flight instinct took over as he ran down the hall faster than ever before. He slammed his fist against the open button to his room and immediately locked it when he got in.

Keith sat on the floor and stared at the open door, his thoughts scrambled. Then, slowly, he lifted his hand to his lips. He could still taste Lance there, but the flavor was quickly being drowned by more tears. Keith realized that Lance had made a mistake and acting on impulse. He probably didn’t mean any of it.

Lance leaned on the door and slid down. He didn't know what he was thinking. Keith was probably disgusted by him. But, even though he felt utterly ashamed of himself, he could still feel butterflies thinking about the feeling of Keith's lips on his.

The next day, Keith left for the blade again. They were starting to put their plan into action to free the last planet in the quadrant, Naxzela, from Galra reign. Keith did not see Lance before he left. Lance stayed shut up in his room as he tried to compose himself and eventually feel asleep. When he woke up, he came to the conclusion that he should try and explain himself and maybe confess. He already made a fool of himself, hopefully if Keith will listen to him they can get past this. However, when he left his room to look for Keith, he found out that he’d already left.

Keith threw himself into planning with a vengeance, never giving himself time to dwell on what happened with Lance. Finally, the day arrived for them to set their plan in motion. Keith manned the particle canon and provided assistance from a distance, but the whole time he was wishing he was in his lion, fighting with his fellow paladins by his side. Despite everything, he wanted desperately to keep Lance safe.

Lance was on edge for the entirety of their mission. Fighting helped him focus but any moment to think sent his thoughts straight to Keith and he would start feeling anxious, and the other Paladins definitely noticed

The mission was stressful and scary, and the final push to stop Zarkon’s witch was so stressful that Lance could hardly remember it. He just remembered Lotor’s ship blasting through the barrier, Haggar’s ship exploding, then silence, after Lotor’s proclamation. Then voices took over comms.

“Is everyone okay?”

“What just happened?”

“Is that Lotor?”

“Did we win?” 

“Is everyone okay? Lance? Hunk? Pidge?” This one was Shiro.

Lance was in a daze. He’d been knocked out for a few moments. He didn’t focus until all of the voices came on.

"Yeah, I'm alive,” he confirmed after a moment. He remembered Keith, and he felt sick to his stomach. He didn't know if he was okay or not.

Keith sat in his ship, his heart pounding so loud in his ears that he could hear nothing else. He was crying, tears dripping down his face. It wasn’t until Lance screamed his name into the comms, desperately, that he heard him. “I’m okay,” he lied, struggling to keep his voice from wavering.

Lance sighed loudly in relief, incredibly glad that Keith was alive. "Thank God,” he muttered.

Keith fumbled for the controls on his ship, but he was shaking so badly he couldn’t hold onto them. He shrank away from them and sobbed, not knowing his comms to Lance were still on.

“Keith?" Lance asked, making sure it was only a one way communication between them.

Keith flinched as Lance’s voice found his ears. “I’m okay,” he forced out again, his voice rough.

”Hey, you're alive. I'm alive. We’re all alive. It's alright Keith. We did it,” Lance said. He also felt shock and panic set in, but trying to help Keith helped him keep his own composure.

“Lance,” Keith said. “Lance, I’m... I’m not okay, Lance. I lied. I’m...” he gasped. “God, _Lance_ , I need help!”

Lance felt his blood freeze over. "Where are you?! Are you hurt? Give me your coordinates and I'll come get you!”

Keith sobbed. He threw himself away from the ships controls and staggered backward. “I’m not…”

“Keith! Where are you!?" Lance screamed. Suddenly his Lion roared and started to speed off.

"Lance, where are you going?" Shiro's voice sounded. 

"I don't know! Red’s moving on his own,” Lance cried.

Keith tripped over his own feet and fell to the floor. He sat, one hand clenched on the floor, the other tangled in his hair. Then he screamed. He just let go of all of the fear, the frustration, the heartbreak, everything he’d been carrying around for months.

Red flew until it got to a Blade ship. Lance figured that’s where Keith was. “Keith! I think I found you! I'm coming!" he called. He quickly got to Keith’s ship and got onboard, then made his way to the cockpit. Upon arriving, he found Keith curled up, sitting on the floor next to the wall, his entire body shaking so badly that Lance could see it. He was breathing heavily. Lance watched him for a moment, waiting to see if he would notice him. Finally, he came over carefully and placed a hand on Keith's shoulder. Keith didn’t react to his touch. Lance wrapped his arms around him, working the older boy into his lap as he sat down. He held him close and tight and continually reminded Keith that they were safe.

Keith didn't struggle with him, and Lance simply held him until he started to calm down. Lance felt a major sense of deja vu but didn't act on his impulses like last time. He only held Keith and reminded him over and over that everything was alright.

Finally, Keith’s panic attack started to subside. He worked hard to steady his breathing, but it would hitch every couple breaths. His body was still shaking, but the feeling of Lance’s arms around him made him feel secure. It took him a long while to realize it was Lance. When Keith's breathing calmed, Lance finally broke the continuous stream of reassurance.

“Keith? Can you hear me?" he asked, rubbing his hand on Keith's shoulder.

Keith gasped another breath and nodded, his face buried in Lance’s chest.

Lance did his best not to enjoy the physical attention, but he was failing. He tangled his fingers into Keith's hair. "Okay, good. You feeling better? You’re breathing better. You need to relax though,” he said lightly, trying to distract Keith if possible.

Keith shook his head. Though, Lance’s fingers in his hair felt really good, almost calming. Lance kept scratching Keith's head, since he didn’t push him away. He didn't say much else, even though he was extremely curious about what happened.

Keith finally pulled back and looked up at him. He had only faintly realized it was Lance, but seeing the younger boys blue eyes looking at him with such clear concern... something snapped inside him. He grabbed the back of Lance’s neck and pulled him down to his level and pressed their foreheads together, squeezing his eyes closed.

Lance froze and was breathless as Keith pulled him closer. His heart skipped a beat as he thought Keith would pull him in for a different reason, but then calmed down a bit when Keith only touched foreheads. He was too stunned to advance forward.

“Keith?" he whispered.

Keith took a few more deep breaths and his heart started to slow. He opened his eyes as Lance spoke, his breath tickling his lips. Lance didn't move, even though he really wanted to close small gap between them. "I know, I know, my presence can be either calming or flustering,” he ended up teasing out of instinct.

Keith laughed. It wasn’t a... happy laugh per say, but more a relieved, heartbroken laugh. Then he tilted his head up and closed the gap between them, catching Lance’s lips in a fierce kiss. His reached up and pulled Lance closer, deepening the kiss. He tangled his hands in Lance’s hair and imagined that he never had to let go.

Lance made a strange surprised sound and stiffened. It took a few moments of Keith working his mouth on his, but his senses finally kicked in as Keith pressed deeper. His arms instinctively tightened around Keith and his hand gripped Keith's hair. He felt an explosion of passionate heat as butterflies overcame him from the sensation of warm lips on his.

Keith closed his eyes and kissed. He parted his lips a little and for a moment his breath was Lance’s breath, and they breathed together. It forced Keith to calm down even more. He turned himself over and straddled Lance, pressing even closer.

Lance seriously didn't expect to get this far. He tried to keep up with Keith's passion but he only felt as if he was melting into the floor. Still, he gripped Keith tightly and tried to remember to breathe. He was too overwhelmed to even feel embarrassed that Keith was sitting on the hard spot between his legs.

Keith kissed and kissed and kissed, grinding his body gently against Lance’s, pinning the younger boy between himself and the wall, half laying on top of him. He never gave Lance time to take a breath. Lance kept at it, slowly loosening his arms so he could trace the outline of Keith's body. Lance was getting some sort of high as Keith aggressively kissed him, barely remembering to breathe… That is, until a single thought popped in his head: What if Keith was only acting from shock? What if none of this was genuine? He pushed Keith's face away for a moment so he could speak. "This is real, right? You're not leading me on?" Lance asked quickly.

Keith took a few deep breaths and finally found his voice. “Lance, I...” he shook his head. He took another deep breath. “All I know is that in this moment I want to be here with you. I’ve never wanted anything more…”


	16. Shiro: The Ultimate Cockblock

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> FINALLY Lance confesses to Keith, telling him he's been in love with him for months. Keith is quick to reciprocate the feeling and they kiss until Shiro, the ultimate cockblock, pops in on comms. Lance thinks it's funny, Keith thinks Lance is an asshole. And yet he still loves him. Funny how that works.

Keith took a few deep breaths and finally found his voice. “Lance, I...” he shook his head. He took another deep breath. “All I know is that in this moment I want to be here with you. I’ve never wanted anything more…”

Lance had never felt more confused than he did in that moment. His blood was in fire but he was certain he would not survive the disappointment if Keith decided otherwise.“Listen,” he said. “I want this moment more than you can imagine… God, I must be crazy, but I think I love you. I want to help you and be here for you… I want you. I don't want to get my hopes up if that’s not possible.”

Keith’s eyes widened. “Wait,” He said. “You... since when?” He stared in silence for a moment. “I always thought you were just tolerating me. I thought... when you kissed me last time that you... ran off because you didn’t mean to do it...” Keith bit his lip and felt another hot tear spill onto his cheek. “That’s why I didn’t say goodbye...”

"I ran off because I thought I was taking advantage!” Lance said. “I thought you didn't like me at all! I thought it was one sided. I thought you cared more about Shiro then you ever did with me. I tried to look for you before you left so I could tell you before either one of us ended up dead."

Keith laughed and this time it was all relief. He took Lance’s face in his hands and pulled him close and just looked at him. “You are, without a doubt, the biggest idiot I have ever met, Lance McClain.” He smiled. “But God damn it, I love you for it.”

Lance blinked a few times, processing Keith's words and then it finally clicked. His cheeks flushed red but he gave a flirty smile. ”Oh, well in that case, you can keep giving me that hot passion of yours. I was actually enjoying myself."

Keith gladly obliged. He grabbed Lance by the hair and pulled him forward, pressing their lips tightly together. He tangled his hands in Lance’s hair and pulled, making him gasp. He took advantage of Lance’s open mouth and slid his tongue inside. Lance definitely got more than he bargained for. He was more surprised than in pain when Keith pulled on his hair but he froze when he felt Keith's tongue invaded his mouth. Paralyzed from the overstimulation of senses, Lance only closed his eyes and gasped quietly, the sound pleased.

Keith pulled away. “Sorry!” he said suddenly. “I... didn’t mean to go so fast, I-“. Lance was quick to kiss him and shut him up.

He gave a few slow kisses then slowly pulled away, pulling on Keith's lip gently with his teeth. Then he whispered, "I pilot the Red Lion now, I am really good at handling fast." Lance said with a cocky smile.

Keith sighed and buried his face in the crook of Lance's neck. "I... I'm really sorry, Lance..." he muttered. Lance wrapped his arms around Keith, and loved how natural it felt.

"Well, my answer to this depends on what you’re sorry for,” he said.

Keith shuddered a little. "Lance, I..." he took a deep breath. He wanted to tell him what he'd almost done but... he didn't want to ruin this moment. "Nothing," he said. "Forget about it. Lets... go back to the castle. Let everyone know we're okay." His face turned a little stormy. "And see what Lotor wants…” He moved to get up but Lance pulled him back down. 

"Yeah, that's probably the _right_ thing to do but I don't care. I've been pining over you for months and I don't know when I get this chance again." 

Keith blushed. "Months?" he asked, a little incredulous. Lance nodded. "God damn it, I'm such an idiot," Keith growled to himself.

Lance smirked. "I like the sound of that.”

Keith glared. "Don't be so smug, McClain! I've been pining after you just as long and you were too stupid to notice! And in my defense, when you flirt with every living thing with two legs- fuck, no you flirted with mermaids too... when you flirt with every living thing you come across, but only ever insult me, it was pretty easy to miss!”

Lance blinked a little bit, not sure if he should be happy or annoyed. He went with the first. "Okay, in my defense, when I get flustered… my way of dealing with it is to flirt. So, anyone I find attractive I get like that. You know when I used those pick up lines on you? Yeah, natural reaction. Second, you were always insulting me first. Or angry at me or trying to beat me up. So it was hard to know for sure if you even could stand me half the time.”

Keith glared at him awhile before he grabbed him by the front of the shirt and kissed him, pinning him down on the floor. He crawled on top of him and braced his elbows on either side of Lance's head and kissed him as they went down on the floor.

Lance yelped in surprise when Keith attacked, worried by his angry expression, but he relaxed the moment he felt their lips touched. He quickly learned that he liked Keith's aggression when it came in this affectionate form. He let himself be guided to the ground and wrapped his arms around Keith, adding pressure to the weight on top of him.

Keith kissed him hard and fast and Lance tangled his hands in Keith's hair and yanked, making Keith groan in approval. _Okay_ , Lance thought. _He's got a thing for hair pulling…_

After Keith registered what Lance did, he forced his tongue between Lance's lips and pulled on his tongue as he gripped his hair tightly. Lance gave a small noise of surprise that turned into a small groan as he gripped the fabric on Keith's back. They kissed for a long time, undaunted by the silence surrounding them, or the worry that maybe someone was going to come check on them; the worry that maybe something went wrong. Keith lost himself in the moment.

Lance barely even dreamed of a moment like this, never wanting to get his hopes up. His mind was quickly muddled in the heat of passion, even if Keith was naturally a little rough. They were jerked back to reality when Shiro's voice came on.

“Keith? Keith? Do you hear me? Are you alright?" Shiro's voice sounded

Keith jumped, startled, a Shiro's voice filled his ears. He rolled off of Lance and took a second to catch his breath. He turned his comms on. "Shiro. I'm here!”

"Thank God. Is Lance with you? The Red Lion took off in your direction,” Shiro asked. Lance moved over to Keith and held him close. He felt like a jerk and started kissing his neck as he tried to talk to Shiro.

Keith bit his tongue, trying not to groan as he talked to Shiro. "He's-" he winced as Lance gently sank his teeth into his neck. "He's with me. Red must've been worried.” Lance chuckled quietly as he tried to talk. He continued to tease him.

“Are you alright? Are you hurt?" Shiro said concerned after Keith made some noises.

"No, I'm- _ow_ _fuck_! I'm fine! I'm fine, everything's fine! I just... hit my head. Lance is taking care of it, but he says there's a pretty bad bruise there…"

Lance tried to suppress his laughter as he rose up a bit and started playing with Keith's ear.

"I'm glad Lance is there with you. Get cleaned up and meet us at the rendevoux point,” Shiro said. "I'm so glad you’re safe." He added.

Keith nodded. "I'm glad you're safe too, Shiro. You're like a brother to me... And I've lost so much family that I..." Keith trailed off. Mostly because he felt weird about saying this while Lance was sucking on his ear. Any jealousy that Lance felt towards Shiro immediately disappeared when Keith explained that Shiro was more like family. 

"It's the same to you to Keith. Please come back to the castle safely so I can sleep peacefully. Over and out." And Shiro's voice disappeared.

Keith glared at Lance. “Did you really have to do that?” He snapped.

Lance pulled back. “Oh, come on, Keith, it was funny!”

Keith kept glaring at Lance as he chuckled nervously."I was only teasing you, and seeing how well you can function while distracted. I’d give you a solid B."

Keith shook his head. "Whatever. Thanks to you, I couldn't think of a good reason we're taking so long. So now Shiro is expecting me to come back with a wound. Guess who has to take care of that?" He glared pointedly at Lance

"Well, maybe you already have a bruise. I'm sure you have at least a few from what happened today." Lance said. "I wouldn't mind volunteering to scan your body for any bruises." Lance added with a wink.

“Nice try, Lance. But I told him I hit my head. That means there’s a bruise on my face.” He smirked at Lance. “It’s weird of me to look forward to you punching me in the face, but I’m gonna enjoy the fact that it’ll hurt you more than me.”

Lance paled a little. ”Aww c'mon! Head and face are two totally different places!" He complained. "And that's not cool, enjoying that I'll be suffering!"

Keith raised his eyebrows a little. “Don’t be a pussy, Lance,” he said. “Just hit me.”

Lance looked very unamused. "I don't want to hit you! I never want to hit you again! Last time freaked me out.”

Keith glared at him. “Fine,” he said. He pulled away and stood. “But I’m not kissing you again.”

Lance frowned at Keith. “That's hardly fair!" he snapped. "Why don't we just bandage you up and call it good?!"

“What good would a bandage do for a bruise, Lance?” Keith asked. “Shiro is expecting me to show up with a bruised face. Just hurry up.”

Lance cringed as he curled his hand into a fist. "You owe me. When we get back and things settle down, I want to be alone with you. Okay?" he asked.

Keith smiled at him. “Is that a promise?” he asked.

"I don't know, you’re the one who has to keep that promise,” he said. Then he perked up as if he had an idea. “Oh! I can give you a massive hickey on your face. That'll look like a bruise right?”

Keith rolled his eyes. "Hurry up, Lance. Just hit me and get it over with. You're pissing me off.”

Lance frowned. "I thought it was a good idea,” he muttered. He twisted his body to initiate the punch and then swung his body, fist aimed at Keith's face.

Keith tried really hard not to flinch as Lance swung at him. The brunette caught him hard across the cheek, making him grunt and sending him to the floor. Keith took a moment to let his vision focus again, then spat blood on the floor and looked up. Lance immediate knelt down to help him up.

"I really hate doing that. If you were hoping I would feel horrible, you got it,” Lance said softly.

Keith shook his head. "No, it's fine." He closed his eyes. "Hopefully that bruises. I don't want to make you do that again."

"Well, I'm not going to, even if you ask again. Does it still hurt?" Lance asked. Keith tried to adjust his jaw and flinched a bit. Lance leaned down and kissed the now forming bruised cheek. "Better?" he asked.

Keith nodded. "Every time you hit me, it makes it hard to believe you don't want to," he said. "You put all of your strength into it every single time." He chuckled a little and spat more blood on the floor. Lance's hit had made him slice the inside of his cheek open on his teeth.

"I don't want you to make me do it again,” Lance said gingerly. He helped get Keith onto his feet. "As much as I don't want to, should we go?" he asked.

Keith nodded. "There's a lot for the team to talk about. You should be there for it. I need to talk to Matt..." Since Matt was the only one who had realized the sacrifice Keith had almost made, he needed to make him promise not to tell Team Voltron.

”So, we go our separate ways for now?" Lance asked slowly. He was certain Keith would somehow die since he always had a knack for getting in trouble. He was getting nervous.

”I mean... We're going back to the castle," Keith said. "Matt lives there, you know. And so do I. I think I might... reconsider my place with the blade…"

"Yeah yeah, I know. I'm just nervous. I thought I would never have the chance to tell you about how I felt and now I'm terrified that I'll lose you in those few minutes I'm not with you.” Lance cracked a small smile. "I'd love to see you more around the castle instead of constantly risking your life for the blade."

Keith tried not to look guilty at that. He smiled, hoping it didn't look as forced as it felt. "I'm just doing my part," he said.

Lance stood there, playing with his hands a bit. Now that the heat of the moment was gone, he felt a little flustered and needy. He stepped forward and quickly gave him a small kiss. "Try not to get yourself killed,” he whispered before he started to walk back to his Lion.

Keith grabbed him by the back of his shirt and pulled him back, spinning him around and wrapping his arms around his waist. He kissed him hard, then shoved him away. "Same goes to you, McClain.”

Lance was too giddy after the kiss to be upset that Keith pushed him away. He walked backwards as he talked to him. ”I'm not the one constantly trying to kill myself,” he said with a teasing grin. He then disappeared to get back to Red.

Keith waited until Lance was gone, then he staggered backward and stumbled into the console. 'Holy shit," he muttered to himself. "Oh my god. Oh my god!" He threw his fist into the air. “ _Yes_!"

Lance already felt like he was floating even before he traveled outside to Red. When he finally got to Red's controls, the reality of what just happened hit him and he felt like racing around in Red and melting into his seat at the same time.

Keith took another moment before grabbed the controls of the ship again. He clenched his teeth against the tremble of panic the familiar feel of the controls in his hands sent through him. "It's okay," he told himself. He started flying toward the castle.

Lance raced around, hollering giddily until he decided he’d wasted enough time and got to the castle before Keith did. He got out of Red and waited for him to show up. After a few minutes, Keith's ship came into view and landed on the landing pad in the castle.

Keith climbed out and Lance immediately swept him into his arms. "Dude," Keith said. "It hasn't even been fifteen minutes…"

“Yeah, but that’s fifteen minutes too long,” Lance said happily. He loosened his grip on Keith and looked at him with a bright smile. Keith sighed, but couldn't deny that he could easily get used to this.


	17. Keith is SUPER Attractive When He Hits Things

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith and Lance make it back to the castle to debrief on the battle. Everyone is thrilled to see Keith, especially Matt, who saw the whole thing happen. Shiro takes Keith out into the hall to figure out what in the hell is going on. Keith gets mad, Shiro gets mad, Keith decides 'fuck it' and punches Shiro. 
> 
> Shiro storms away like a little kid and Keith, well, he's gonna go back to the pool.
> 
> Any guesses on who's going to follow?

After a moment, the two split up. Lance made his way to the bridge to see if Allura was there. He needed to know what was going on. The rest of team Voltron was at the bridge with Allura and Coran. He walked in and tried to act normal.

"Is Keith alright? Where is he?” Shiro asked. 

Lance perked up from the mention of Keith's name. "Oh yeah. He's fine. Got some nasty bruises and maybe the case of PTSD but otherwise he is fine.”

Keith finally found Matt standing outside Keith’s room. He turned at Keith's footsteps, and the next thing Keith knew he was being swept up into a hug. "Thank the ancients you're okay!" Matt said. He held Keith out at arms length. "What the hell were you thinking?!"

Keith froze, a little surprised by how many hugs he had gotten that day.

"I had to if that meant making the mission successful! You know that this war is more important than one person!" Keith explained as Matt held him tightly.

Matt glared at him. "No! I won't accept that! You scared the shit out of me, Keith!" He stared at him for a moment. "I'm just glad you're safe."

Keith sighed. "I'm glad everyone is safe. That could have been a lot worse. But Matt… could you do me a massive favor?" Keith asked, growing serious.

Matt looked a little wary. "If it involves you getting yourself killed, no chance."

Keith groaned. "Why does everyone think I'm always trying to kill myself? Just… don’t mention what I almost did to anyone in Voltron, alright. They’re already worried and I don't want to make it worse."

Matt nodded. "If that's what you want. But you have to promise me that you won't even try that shit again, you hear me, Kogane?”

"If me living or not makes a difference winning this war, then I can't promise that. But…I’ll try to be less reckless,” Keith said seriously. "I don't want to die." He immediately thought of Lance.

Matt nodded. "Then my lips are sealed." He grabbed Keith by the chin and turned his head, examining his bruised cheek. "How'd this happen?" he asked.

"I hit my face. . . . on some of the controls. When Lotor’s ship blasted the barrier… I pulled up on the controls too hard and kinda got thrown forward into them…” Keith said quickly, remembering the cover up from back in the ship. Flashes of Lance teasing him while talking to Shiro flashed and he felt his blood rush.

"Don't be embarrassed," Matt said, noticing the blush. "It was a crazy fight. We haven't really found out what Lotor wants yet... but... I guess he saved your life, huh?”

Keith grimaced at the thought of that. "I highly doubt he meant to do that on purpose. Just a side effect of good timing.”

Matt shrugged. "Either way, I'm glad he did. I don't trust him, but..."

Keith nodded. ”I don’t like it, but we might as well hear him out. The Blade are rebel Galra, maybe he thinks the same way.”

Matt nodded. "Maybe." He hugged Keith again. "I'm really glad you're alive," he said. Keith nodded. "Me too. Lets go find everyone else.”

Matt nodded and they both walked up to the bridge were everyone else was. Shiro was giving a formal debriefing and what should be done. When Keith and Matt walked into the room, the meeting broke apart as Pidge ran to hug her brother and everyone else went to Keith.

Keith, we are so glad you're okay. We were worried when you didn't answer on comms after the battle!" Allura said, being the first to sweep him up into a hug. Then she mimicked Matt's movements, grabbing Keith's chin and roughly tilting his head to the side to examine the bruise. "What happened?"

Keith clumsily explained what happened as Lance chuckled quietly behind everyone else. He still hated punching him, but the reason was entertaining.

Shiro was next to stand in front of Keith, a relieved smile on his face. "You fought well Keith. Welcome home,” he said pulling him into a strong hug.

Keith squeaked as Shiro hugged him. The guy was stronger than he used to be. Keith weakly hugged him back. "Glad to be back," he groaned.

Shiro patted him on the shoulder right as Hunk half collapsed onto him, saying he was so glad everyone was still alive. Pidge gave him a hug. "I know someone who is extremely happy that you are alive,” she whispered, then pulled away, glancing over at Lance

Keith felt his cheeks go warm and brushed Pidge off. "Didn't realize you were all so worried about me," he admitted.

Lance awkwardly came up to Keith, not sure what to do with everyone around. He decided to play it cool. "I told you a million times. We all care about you,” he said, opening his arms in case Keith wanted a hug.

Keith hugged him tightly, trying not to blush. Then he pulled away. "So what's up with Lotor?" he asked.

Shiro's face got stormy. "I'm not sure yet. But he saved us. There was no way we were gonna break through that barrier without his help…”

Lance was happy for a hug, but he felt like Keith pulled away too quickly, even though he knew it was time to get serious.

"I agree. I think we should at least listen to what he has to say. Then we can decide with the Blade the best course of action,” Allura said.

Matt gave Keith a meaningful look, to which Keith stuck his tongue out quickly. "Princess," Shiro said. "Did we get everyone? Did anyone go missing?”

Allura nodded. “I believe everyone is here. Everyone that wasn't already pretty much certainly dead.”

"Are you sure?" Shiro asked. "I could've sworn I saw a Blade ship flying in just as Lotor blasted the ship. I'm worried... Keith?”

Keith stiffened, and quickly came up with something. "As far as I am aware, everyone is accounted for. We do checks after we finish to know for certain,” Keith explained quickly.

Lance raised an eyebrow at him, knowing the bit about after-battle checks was a flat-out lie, but he didn't say anything.

"Okay," Shiro said. "Keith... can I talk to you in private for a second?"

Keith looked at Shiro in surprise. "Uh, yeah. Right now?" Lance looked at Shiro with a raised eyebrow.

Shiro nodded and grabbed Keith by his upper arm, none too gently, and pulled him out of the room. Keith cast a confused glance over his shoulder.

Lance almost pulled Keith to him as they passed him, but he figured that would be a little weird. He watched carefully as they disappeared.

Keith followed Shiro but he was acting a little weird. "Shiro?" he asked.

Shiro twisted Keith around and slammed his back against the wall. “Keith, what is going on?” he snapped.

Keith stared at Shiro, shocked. "What are you talking about?!" he snapped back, not liking being talked to like that.

“Lance came back and told us you might have PTSD. Did you have a panic attack?!”

Keith cursed Lance. ”There were some close calls and people almost died. I'm fine now,” he muttered darkly.

Shiro grabbed Keith’s chin, an action Keith was getting sick of, but he couldn’t jerk his face away. Shiro forced him to look at him. “Keith, don’t lie to me. What is going on?”

Keith really didn't want to explain how he almost sacrificed himself. "Why would I lie to you? I'm safe. Everyone's safe. We are fine,” he said through gritted teeth, fighting back the urge to hit him.

Shiro held eye contact with Keith for a really long time, then let him go. “Sorry,” he said. “I’m just... on edge...” 

Keith took a step back, then swung his fist out at him. Shiro must have seen it coming, cause he cause Keith's wrist with his hand. He held it there and sighed.

"I didn't mean to anger you, but you know there is no need to hit me,” Shiro said, a little softer.

Keith wrenched his arm away. “Yeah, says the guy who just slammed me into the wall,” he snapped.

Shiro gave a weak smile. "Perhaps that was a little hypocritical of me. Are you sure you are okay? I know you’ve dealt with issues in your past. I don't want you to be burdened with more than you can handle."

Keith nodded. “I’m okay, Shiro. I just... slipped for a second. Lance helped me through it.”

Shiro smiled at him. "I'm glad he did. I'm glad you two are becoming better friends. You need those to get though the hard times,” he advised.

Keith nodded uncomfortably. “Yeah...” He rolled his shoulder then swung out and punched Shiro across the face.

Shiro felt the impact and placed a hand in his cheek as he looked at Keith. “Really, Keith?" he asked, disappointed.

“Sorry, Shiro. I’m a little stressed out right now, and you throwing me into the wall kinda fucking hurt,” Keith snapped, suddenly rather angry.

“I'm stressed too, but I suppose that wasn’t the best way to make sure you are okay. Calm down, please."

Keith took a deep breath. “Sorry, Shiro. It’s been a long day.”

Shiro nodded, then tilted his head a little. “What’s this?” he asked, pointing at a bruise on Keith’s neck.

Keith flushed but tried to compose himself. "More battle damage. It's nothing big,” he said quickly, cursing Lance in his head again.

Shiro took him in his hands and inspected the bruise. "How'd you get a bruise here?" he asked.

Keith tried to shove him away. ”Why are you being like this? I don't know how it got there! I didn’t make a note of every person I fought today and who hit me where,” he snapped.

Shiro recoiled a little. "Okay, Keith, chill. What's your problem?”

"I don't like you asking a million questions about something I don't know about,” Keith retorted quickly.

Shiro nodded. "Okay. But I don't like this attitude. I don't know what's gotten into you..." He ran his hand through his hair. "God, this stupid war has really messed us up, huh? You're suddenly even _more_ defensive than usual, you're having panic attacks, you're lying to me, I... I don't know what to do."

This only made Keith angrier, but he tried to keep calm. " _I'm Fine. I'm not lying to you,_ ” he hissed, even though he was definitely lying.

Shiro shook his head. "I know you, Keith. I know when you're lying to me." He turned. "If you don't want to be honest with me, then fine."

Keith bit his lip. He didn't want to tell Shiro about Lance until they managed to figure it out themselves. Still, he really didn't like lying to Shiro. “I'll tell you when I figure it out myself,” he muttered.

Shiro started walking away. "I don't know what else I'm supposed to do for you, Keith. You won't talk to me. Lance said you had a panic attack. And I can see it in your face and the way you're breathing and the way you're talking to me!"

Keith groaned, his voice low. "I don't really know what’s going on either! But when I do I'll tell you, okay?" Keith says frustrated. He loved Shiro but sometimes he made Keith feel like a child.

“I just want to know what happened out there, Keith. What happened after the battle ended? What did Lance help you with?” Shiro paused and seemed to accept that Keith wasn’t going to talk to him. “I want to help, Kogane! But you won't _let me_!" he yelled. Then he huffed and walked away.


	18. Skinny Dipping

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith would like to note that he was NOT expecting Lance to follow him to the pool.
> 
> Lance walks in on Keith and traps him, unknowingly, in a VERY compromising position. Keith screams like a little girl and Lance almost uses... well... just read the chapter.

Keith watched him leave, feeling guilty. He knew he would feel worse if he told Shiro he’d almost taken his own life to try and win the battle. He sulked and stood there, not sure where to go. Finally, he turned and headed to his room. He stood in front of the door for a long time before he turned away and headed to the pool. It was one place no one visited often and he could be sure no one would bother him.

Lance waited while the others discussed what to do. He tried to be patient while he waited for Shiro and Keith to come back. He was tempted to follow them, but decided to was better to let them talk it out alone. Jealousy tried to fill him, but he reminded himself of how passionately Keith kissed him.

When Shiro came back, Lance decided to look for Keith. He wanted to make sure he was okay. He snuck away from the others and began his search.

Keith pulled his clothes off one at a time, tossing them onto the floor beside the pool. Finally, he pulled his boxers off and jumped into the water, not caring that he was totally naked and if the castle occupants suddenly decided to have a pool party he was gonna look really stupid.

Lance checked everywhere. Keith's room, the dining area, training room. Finally, he thought to head to the pool, remembering that Keith sometimes liked to go there. When the doors opened, he didn't see anything. He stepped out and looked around a bit, when suddenly Keith popped out of the water. “Geez!” Lance cried, clutching his chest. “Are you trying to kill me?”

Keith screamed like a little girl. He hadn't expected Lance to be there and so his sudden outburst scared the bejeezus out of him. He immediately remembered that he was naked and sank lower into the water, praying to any and all gods listening that Lance couldn't tell.

The water distorted Keith’s image enough that Lance didn't notice Keith's lack of clothing.

"Where did you go? Shiro came back without you. And with the way he was acting when he practically dragged you out of there… I was worried."

"Shiro and I had a bit of a falling out," Keith said. "Partially over a hickey someone gave me." He gave Lance a pointed look. "I didn't feel like going back and I figured people would leave me alone, so I came here."

Lance stiffened then smiled at him. ”Seriously? I hardly even tried. Your neck must be sensitive. Which means that this will be fun,” he said smugly. "And you promised me alone time so I came looking for you. I mean, if you really want me to leave I might, but I don't want to,” he added.

Keith ducked his head underwater for a second, then resurfaced and pushed his hair off of his forehead. Against the wet, white skin of his face, the dark purple bruise on his cheek stood out. "You'll do whatever you want to anyways, won't you?" he asked resignedly after a moment.

Now that Keith moved his mullet out of the way, Lance could see the hicky and it warmed his chest. He couldn't stop smiling. ”You thought you were stubborn? I can be pretty hardcore if I want to be too, y’know. Right now, I like seeing you covered in water and seeing that mark on your neck. Reminds me that what happened earlier really did happen.”

"God, you're so gay, Lance," Keith grumbled to himself. He sank lower in the water. If Lance stayed... he'd be stuck in the water naked until he could get Lance to go away... at least long enough for him to grab his boxers off of the floor… He was starting to seriously question his decision to take them off. Like… guys swim in their boxers all the time. It wouldn’t have been a weird thing to do, leaving them on. Luckily, Lance didn't really notice the pile of clothes on the floor.

"Surprised?" Lance asked curiously.

"A little. The amount you flirt with girls it's a little weird to have you being so utterly... flagrantly…homosexual…” Keith said. He thought maybe if he pulled himself closer to the pool wall he could better cover the fact that he was naked. He moved.

Lance shrugged. "I've always found both girls _and_ guys attractive. I just don't flirt with guys anymore because it’s never ended well in the past, so I stopped doing it altogether,” he briefly explained, watching Keith as he moved closer to him.

Keith made it to the wall and sank even lower into the water. "So, you're bi, then?" he asked Lance.

"Yeah, technically. I guess maybe more like… pan? Since aliens don't really bug me either. If I find someone attractive, that’s how it is,” Lance felt a little weird to talk about stuff like this. He never talked to anyone about it. Not even Hunk, much less Keith.

Keith nodded. "Okay." He could tell Lance felt weird, so he didn't press any further. Besides, he kinda wanted Lance to leave so he could put some pants on.

"What about you?” Lance asked. “From the way you acted I was sure you didn't even care about this kind of stuff. You’re always so serious all the time.”

Keith hesitated. "I don't know," he said. "I guess I usually have more important things on my mind…"

Lance nodded. "Reasons why I was always convincing myself that you never were interested in me. I tried to respect that.”

Keith smiled a little and Lance lowered himself to the floor, laying on his stomach and looking at Keith. "You're gonna get your clothes wet," Keith said.

Lance shrugged. "I don't care. I like being close to you.” He paused. "Unless you splash water on me then I will end you."

Keith reached out of the water and grabbed the front of Lance's shirt, pulling him toward him and kissing him. He let him go after a second. "Do you know how awesome it that I can do that whenever I want?”

Lance felt dazed and it took him a moment to process what Keith said. He smiled. “Do you know how much I love it when you do that?" he said softly. He leaned forward to catch Keith's lips with his again; softer and longer than Keith's kiss. Then Lance did something that made Keith squeal in protest. He grabbed him around the waist and started to pull him up, closer to him.

Lance felt Keith protest when he tried to pull him closer and even encouraged him to get out of the water. Lance felt his affection skyrocket and he wanted to pour it onto Keith. Still, he paused. "What's the matter, kitten?” he whispered sweetly.

Keith struggled to pull himself away from Lance and get back into the water, mumbling his protests against Lance's lips. "Come on, Keith! What's wrong?” Keith kept pushing away until he finally broke away from Lance and sunk low in the water. An undeniable blush presented itself under the water.

"What did I do?" Lance asked quickly.

Keith shook his head. "Nothing," he said, bringing his mouth back above the water. "It's just… it's cold…"

Lance blinked. "I can keep you warm. I'm hot enough,” he said with a stupid grin.

Keith sank lower and shook his head.

Lance wondered if he’d hit a line he shouldn't have crossed. So he pulled back and started to take his shirt off. If Keith wouldn’t come out of the water, he’d go in.

Keith saw what Lance was doing and panicked. “No, no no no!” he snapped.

Lance ripped his shirt off anyways. "Well, if you won’t come out of the water then I'll just come in. What's the big deal?" he asked, working on his pants.

Keith dove under the water. Maybe if he was lucky he'd pass out and drown.

Lance got to his boxers and dove into the water. When he popped out again, he noticed Keith didn't. He saw his outline under the water and sighed. He began to work on forcing Keith out of the water.

When Keith felt Lance's arms around his waist he shrieked and kicked away, his foot connecting hard with something. He popped up out of the water and saw that Lance had his face in his hands. "Jesus, Keith, what the fuck?!" he snapped.

Keith still bent low in the water. “Sorry…” he muttered.

Lance hissed as blood started dripping between his fingers. Keith had kicked him right in the nose. "Oh hell," Lance said when he noticed blood in the water. He swam over to the side and fumbled for something to staunch the flow of blood. Keith blanched when he saw what Lance picked up.

Lance stared at Keith's boxers in his hand, processing. He pushed them away and looked over at Keith. He finally realized that where there should have been color around his pelvis, there was none. He felt more blood drip from his nose as his face grew hot.

Keith nearly fainted from embarrassment. He averted his eyes as Lance fumbled for something that _wasn’t_ his boxers.”

“Keith…" Lance said cautiously. Keith didn't say anything. In fact, he turned his back on Lance so he couldn't see anything.

"You know, you could have just asked me to not look for a sec,” Lance said slowly, trying to be the better man. He felt excitement but tried his best to hide it.

Keith was so ridiculously embarrassed he actually considered drowning himself to save himself from the humiliation. He was contemplating smashing his head against the side of the pool when he heard a splash. He looked up to see that Lance had taken off his boxers and tossed them over to him.

"I accidentally got blood on yours… So… use those if you need them,” Lance said, blood still pouring from his nose as he tried to stand with pseudo confidence.

Keith wanted death. Oh sweet King Alfor, he wanted death so badly. He was so embarrassed and now he was flustered too and oh god, there was blood rushing south. He needed to get out of there.

Lance was starting to think Keith might actually pass out from how fast his face was changing colors. First white, then stark red. He quickly realized that this was probably not the best idea. He started to walk closer to see what he would do.

Keith registered the fact that Lance was walking toward him, but he couldn't move to do anything about it. Embarrassment had frozen him in place. He just watched, wide-eyed.

Lance was pleased that Keith didn't pull away from him. He moved until he was about arms distance away. With blood still dripping down his face, but not nearly as quickly as before, he reached out and touched Keith's cheek.

"I don't get why you are so embarrassed. You have a great body, why are you trying to hide it?" he said smoothly.

Keith flinched at Lance's touch, but it at least seemed to jerk him back to reality. He scrambled to grab Lance's wet boxers out of the water and stumbled away, pulling them on as quickly as he could. Once somewhat decent, he pulled himself out of the pool and ran.

Lance watched, amused, as Keith pulled in his boxers. But when he started to run away, he started to swim to the side of the pool so he could get out and go after him.

"Wait! Keith! I'm sorry! Please come back!" he shouted.

Keith jumped into the elevator and pressed the button, sighing in relief as the door closed before Lance could get out of the water. He waited impatiently for the elevator to move up and when the doors opened, he ran for his room.

Lance watched as Keith disappeared into the elevator. He sighed, regretting his decision. He pulled himself out if the water and tried to find something to stop his nose bleed. He finally decided to use his shirt and got his pants on. He grabbed Keith's clothes and exited the pool area.


	19. Panic Attacks and Cuddling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith's having nightmares and ends up at Lance's door. Lance is thrilled until he sees the state Keith is in. They cuddle. Keith sleeps. Lance is happy. You're welcome.

Keith locked the door behind him and stood against it, dripping and gasping for breath. Luckily, the cold from being out of the water had killed his boner pretty quickly. He stood, shivering, for a long time.

Lance got to his room and started to wash the blood out of Keith's boxers, flushing at the thought that Keith wore these. He couldn’t help but think about taking them off of him. He hung them up to dry and finally got fully dressed. He grabbed Keith's clothes and started heading to his room.

Keith had stood long enough for Lance's boxers to mostly dry on him. It was a long time, but to be fair, the air in his room was dry and warm. He finally pulled clothes on over them, not even really thinking about it.

Lance finally made it to Keith’s door and stared at it. How many times had he done this? More than he cared to admit, but now he felt more confident as he knocked. "Keith, I have your clothes,” he said.

Keith froze when he heard Lance's voice in the hallway. “Uh… Keith isn't home right now. Leave a message… beep…"

Lance looked at the door, then busted out laughing. “That… ha…was amazing! Holy crow!" he said between laughs.

Keith blushed and sank to the floor in humiliation. He didn't say anything else.

When Lance finally calmed down, he realized the door didn't answer. "C'mon Keith. I'm sorry for freaking you out. Can you let me in?" he asked softly.

“Keith's not home," Keith said again, this time his voice much quieter

“Holy hell, Keith. C'mon. Please? You promised time together,” Lance said, a little quieter.

"Leave a message," Keith squeaked.

Lance sighed. "You being adorable like that and having this door between us is _really_ cruel,” he said, softly enough that only Keith could hear it. "Please let me in."

Keith stood up and grabbed the blanket off of his head. He cocooned himself in it, laid on the bed, and hit the button to unlock the door.

Lance was relieved when the door opened. He walked in and saw Keith on his bed.

"Well shit, I didn't mean to freak you out that badly." Lance dropped Keith's clothes and sat on the bed next to him. "I'm really sorry,” he muttered.

Keith pulled the blanket over his head and tried to hide his embarrassment.

Lance sighed and placed his hand on Keith's shoulder. He slowly rubbed it and didn't say anything.

Keith groaned into the pillows. He didn't know what to do. With Lance being so nice all the time... and then there was him, who was unable to do anything without freaking out? Ugh. Lance kept rubbing his shoulder and slowly got closer to him. He didn't like sitting in silence.

"Hey, what's up?" Lance asked slowly.

Keith sighed. "I don't know," he mumbled into the pillows. "I didn't realize a person could ever be so embarrassed..."

Lance squeezed his shoulder and sighed. ”Why are you so embarrassed?" he asked slowly.

"Because you walked in on me naked," Keith grumbled.

Lance smiled. "Okay, I get that, but… Better me than someone else right? Maybe?"

"Anyone else would've left me alone," Keith said. He pulled the blanket tighter around himself, trying to make up for being exposed by covering every bit of himself as much as possible.

"Okay fair, I guess. I would have left if you asked me to,” Lance offered. He really wished Keith would calm down so he could get more kisses.

Keith shook his head. "It doesn't matter," he said. He felt Lance lightly pulling the blanket away from his face. It didn't come off easily, but eventually Keith have up.

"Hey there,” Lance said softly. "I missed seeing your devilish face.”

Keith immediately rolled his eyes, "Devilish face?" he grumbled. "Really?"

Lance smiled. "Hey, I'm not lying. So yeah, really,” he said softly. "What? Too cheesy?”

Keith nodded. “If this is gonna be a thing, you should think of some better compliments.” He thought for a second. “Like how I could say to you, ‘hey Lance, I missed seeing the way your hair always seems to have a cowlick in the back, no matter how hard you try to tame it.’”

Lance frowned a bit. "I'm actually trying to be nice. That sounded pretty back handed. I work on that cowlick every morning!"

Keith looked up. “I meant that as a compliment,” he said defensively. “I think it’s cute when your hair is messy!”

Lance blinked a few times. ”Really?" He finally asked, starting to feel flustered.

“Duh,” Keith said. He rolled over on the bed and looked up at Lance. “There’s a lot about you that I like.”

Lance smiled and casually laid down next to Keith, propping his head up with his hand. "I hope so. Care so expand upon that?" he asked eagerly.

“Your eyes are really nice,” Keith said. “They’re such a pure blue that it just… I dunno. I love it. And your jokes are so bad that they’re good. And your annoying tendency to constantly ask me for compliments but never return the favor… is kind of endearing…

Lance didn't actually expect Keith to give those compliments, so butterflies churned in his chest and his cheeks darkened.

Lance tried to come up with something, but nothing came to him. He sat, mouth open, silent.

Keith closed his eyes and sighed. “It’s been a long day,” he said. “Maybe you should go. Get some sleep.”

Lance shook his head. "No! I mean, even if I was tired, I don't think I could sleep. I'd just be thinking of you all night long,” he muttered, really not wanting to leave

Keith sighed. “Look, I’m… it’s been a long day. I need some sleep. I think you should go. We can talk in the morning.”

Lance felt his heart sink, and his expression followed suit. "Yeah, okay…” he said, crestfallen.

Keith waited a minute. “Lance, I’m not kicking you out for good. I just need a little alone time. I’m tired.”

Lance bit his lip and leaned forward a bit. He paused for only a second before he gently pressed a kiss onto Keith's lips. His heart immediately fluttered. To Lance's delight, Keith didn't immediately pull away.

Keith savored the kiss. “Lance,” he muttered against the blue paladin’s lips. “It’s time to go. I’ll see you in the morning, okay?”

"Promise?" Lance said mid kiss. He knew he could see Keith tomorrow, but he couldn't find the motivation to leave.

“Seriously Lance,” Keith said, pushing him away. “Get out.”

Lance frowned at him. "Fine. Fine. I'm leaving. Geez." He tried not to feel disappointed, but he had seriously hoped that maybe the kissing would convince Keith to let him stay. He sat up and got off the bed.

Keith watched as Lance left the room, then closed his eyes. The lights shut off within minutes and soon, Keith was fast asleep. He started to dream about the events of that day. Only in this dream, Lance was the one about to crash into the barrier and Keith could do nothing to stop him. He screamed his name, but Lance's ship smashed against the barrier, which faltered and shattered. Ships sped in to finish the job, but Keith flew towards Lance.

He sped to Lance as quickly as he could. Lance’s ship was barely intact. Keith jumped out of his ship and quickly made his way to Lance. In the scattered rubble, he saw Lance floating lifelessly. Deep cuts and burns littered his body. Keith cried out, tears in his eyes as he pulled Lance's body to his, trying to bring him back to life.

Keith sat up with a scream and it took him a few moments to remember where he was. He looked frantically around the room and, as his heart rate slowed, he realized there were tears on his cheeks.

He tried to relax so he could sleep but the tears would not stop. He was worried about Lance, even though he was positive he was in his room. After awhile, he got up, still wrapped in his blanket and left his room. He padded down the hall and stood outside Lance's door for a long time. Finally, he knocked.

Lance was dead asleep, sprawled on his bed. He didn't hear the knocking the first time. At the second knock, he rolled over. "Who izzit?" he mumbled.

Keith took a second to answer. Thank god Lance answered. That alone calmed him down a bit. "It's me," he said.

A weird sense of excited urgency woke Lance up and he immediately got out of bed. He got to the door and opened it. "You just couldn't stay away from me could yo-" He stopped immediately as he saw Keith's tearstained face. ”Hey hey hey, what's wrong? Here,” he said softly. He pulled Keith into hug, then walked backwards into his room. The door closed after a few moments.

Keith clung onto Lance so tightly that Lance had a hard time breathing. Keith buried his face in Lance's shirt and tried his best to calm down. Lance knew something was really wrong. He placed a hand on Keith's head and refused to let him go.

"Hey, it's alright. I'm here" he said softly, hoping to calm him down.

Keith nodded. "I know." he said, his voice hoarse. He could only imagine he'd been screaming in his sleep.

Lance held him closely, trying to calm him down. His breathing slowly went back to normal but he still clung to Lance. Lance placed a hand on his cheek. "May I see your pretty face?" he asked quietly.

Keith didn't move, didn't soften his grip even a little. He was still convincing himself that the Lance he held now was real, and the one in his dream was only a dream. Oddly, he was having a difficult time with it. He started to shake.

Lance decided it might be better to have him lay down. He pulled him over to his bed and they slowly laid down. Lance wrapped his arms tightly around Keith’s torso and even tangled his legs with Keith’s.

Keith was still crying, though he didn't know why. He had Lance in his arms, was breathing in his scent and feeling his warmth.

“Keith. It's okay. Calm down. What's wrong? What happened?" Lance asked softly.

Keith offered no response and finally Lance stopped asking. He figured he'd just wait it out, and then try to get Keith to talk when he was able. He stroked the older boy's hair with one hand, while the other held him tightly.

Lance also decided to see what affection would do. He started to give slow and tender kisses on Keith's head, neck, and any other skin he had access to.

Slowly, Keith calmed down. He was exhausted from the second panic attack he'd had in twelve hours. It didn't take long for him to fall asleep in Lance's arms, without even giving the younger boy time to ask him again what had happened. He had no more nightmares that night.

Lance felt Keith finally calm down. When he asked him once more what had happened, all he received was calm breathing. It took him a few minutes to realize Keith had fallen asleep. He didn’t dare wake him up, so he pulled the blanket over them and kissed his head.

"Sleep well. I'm right here if you need me,” he whispered.


	20. Leather and Toys and Whatnot

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith is horny, Lance has never bottomed but like... that's cool. Keith manages to tie Lance down but then he does something so stupid it might ruin everything. Spoiler alert: it does.

Keith opened his eyes in the morning to find himself inches away from Lance’s face. He took a second to wake up and then snuggled closer to Lance’s warm chest.

Lance breathed softly, his arms still loosely wrapped around Keith. He stirred a little bit when Keith moved closer to him, but then fell into a light sleep again. Keith laid still for a moment, then stretched, taking a deep breath. He felt great, like he’d had the best sleep of his life.

When Keith stretched, Lance started to wake up. He opened his eyes quickly to see if Keith was still there. To his pleasant surprise, he was, still snuggling next to him. He felt his heart melt as a rush of warmth flooded his chest. He smiled softly at Keith, happy that he was comfortable enough to stay with him the rest of the night.

"Good morning, Mullet,” he whispered.

Keith yawned and looked up. He seemed to take a moment to try and remember how he’d gotten here. Lance was at a loss for words. Keith was adorable when he was waking up, looking tiredly at him. Lance nuzzled his nose against Keith's.

Keith breathed deeply and stretched again before laying his head on Lance’s chest contentedly.

Lance squeezed his arms around Keith, enjoying him being so close. He’d half dreamed of moments like this, but never let himself get carried away. It was better than he’d imagined.

"Do you want to sleep some more?" Lance asked.

“What time is it?” Keith mumbled sleepily. “And when did I get here?”

"I have no clue. Does it really matter though?" Lance asked. ”You came here last night in a panic attack, but after awhile you calmed down and fell asleep. I didn't want to wake you up, so you stayed here."

Keith nodded. Now he remembered, the details of his dream a little fuzzy, but he knew it was terrifying. “I think I had a nightmare,” he said.

"That makes sense. I couldn't get a word out of you last night,” Lance confirmed, rubbing Keith's back.

Keith took a deep breath. "Sorry. I probably really freaked you out..."

Lance smiled softly. "I'm kinda used to it at this point. But hey, I like this a lot more than you throwing punches at me."

Keith chuckled and stretched upward to catch Lance in a kiss. It felt so natural, he had a hard time believing he'd ever thought it wasn't gonna happen.

At the same time Lance was wondering if he would ever get used to the sudden electricity every time Keith snuck a kiss. He relaxed and pressed a little more into the kiss, gripping Keith and pulling him in.

Keith finally pulled away to breath and the two locked eyes. "I have a question," Keith said breathlessly.

Lance looked at Keith for a moment, inching closer. "Yeah? What's up?" he asked, curiously. He wanted to answer as quickly as possible so that he could keep kissing him.

"What are we gonna tell the others?" Keith asked.

Lance paused for a moment, then flushed red at the thought. “I… uh… don’t know. I guess it depends on what we are. I mean, I’m selfish and want you all to myself but… it's a two way street you know?"

Keith closed his eyes. "I mean... I've never really done anything like this," he confessed. "I don't know how to do the whole... relationship thing..." He blushed. "I mean.... if that's what you want! We can talk about it some other time! We don't have to decide right now!"

Lance smiled, glad he wasn't the only one nervous about the situation. "I just wanna know what we are before we say anything,” he said. “It's a lot easier that way. If you’re willing to be patient with me, I can show you the ropes. I'm ready to jump onto that ship if you are."

Keith looked at him for a moment then smiled back. "I'd like that," he said. Then he started kissing Lance's neck as the brunette talked to him. He was determined to get back at him for the hickey.

Lance felt shivers and goosebumps scatter throughout his entire body as Keith's lips touched his neck. Lance's hand grabbed a fistful of Keith's shirt and he chuckled softly. “I’m…glad… I guess the only important question now is… who’s gonna pilot this ship?" he joked.

"Shut up," Keith muttered, his lips brushing lightly against Lance’s skin with a tiny smile. "Your jokes are worse in the mornings."

“Last night you said that my jokes were endearing,” Lance replied, moving his head so Keith could keep doing his thing. "Unless you’re nicer at night."

"I'm never nice," Keith said. He bit Lance's neck hard enough that the blue paladin flinched. Keith smiled against his warm skin and chuckled, his lips buzzing against Lance's neck.

Lance didn't know if he flinched from surprise or pain, but either way, he liked it. "So you like rough love huh? Is that why you have all of those toys hidden in your closet?".

Keith froze. "Oh my god," he mumbled. "I forgot you saw that..." His face was suddenly burning. "Oh my god."

Lance was quickly learning that Keith was easily embarrassed. It was both adorable and counterproductive.

 

"Hey, I think it is kinda hot,” he whispered. "Are you the sadist or the masochist in those situations?"

Keith groaned. "Depends on my mood," he said, his voice suddenly a sexy growl. He licked Lance's neck and moved up to his ear.

Lance's heart jumped and he shivered at the feeling of Keith’s hot tongue against his neck. "For someone who doesn't have experience, you sure have some advanced toys,” he tried to tease.

"If you ever want to try them out," Keith suggested, drawing confidence from Lance's short stumble over his words. Lance chuckled, but it was short lived as Keith's breath got to his ear.

”You freaked out when I caught you naked at the pool. One step at a time, okay?" he replied, still stumbling over his words.

"I wasn't expecting that," Keith said. "If I'm expecting it… that's a whole different story. You really want to know if I'm a top or a bottom?"

Lance looked at him with a sly smile. “Hell yeah, I want to know,” he said quietly, still clinging to Keith as he teased and ghosted around his ear.

“You’ll have to be patient and find out,” Keith said. “Though I’m pretty sure I know what you are...”

"What do you think I am then?" Lance asked.

Keith bit his neck again and grabbed Lance’s wrists, pinning him down. He kissed him. “Bottom,” he said.

Lance looked at Keith with wide eyes, thinking that it was extremely sexy despite knowing that he normally topped. Lance lifted his head a bit, trying to capture Keith's lips. "Normally I’m on top, but I don't mind seeing what it’s like letting someone else control me,” he whispered breathlessly.

"You won't get a choice," Keith said, lifting his own head up and away. Lance pouted at him and Keith gave in. He leaned down and allowed Lance to kiss him. Lance relished it. He tried to press further, but Keith kept his hands pinned above his head. Lance could only reach up so much. Keith could feel him struggling and added more pressure to Lance's hands but kept the kiss light, to Lance's frustration.

Keith lifted his head after a moment. "See?" he asked, his voice velvet and low. His pupils were slightly dilated. "If this is what you want, you'll do anything and everything I say."

Normally, Lance would protest, but he was thirsty for Keith's attention for too long and he nodded feverishly to Keith's request. His whole body was buzzing and butterflies consumed hims as he tried to reach for Keith's lips again. Keith refused him and gave him a malevolent smile. "God, you're like a needy puppy, aren't you?”

Lance frowned at him. "What part of‘I've been pining after you for months’ did you not get? Quit being a jerk or I’ll put you in your place, Mullet.”

"Good luck with that, pup," Keith said with a sultry smile. He had Lance pinned nicely and he knew it too. He kissed Lance's forehead, pulling away before Lance could kiss him back.

Lance felt his blood boil as he pulled away from him again. He tried to get Keith off of him so he could take his rightful place on top, but Keith had him pinned down and Lance struggled for a moment.

"So help me Keith…” he hissed.

Keith grinned. "Or what?" he asked. "It's not like you can do anything to me right now, all pinned down. Besides… you said you'd do anything and everything I say, remember?"

"Yeah, but then actually do something. Not this bait and switch shit,” Lance protested with a frown. He stopped struggling, but he was getting mad.

Keith could sense that Lance was getting upset, but he was having too much fun with it. He leaned down and pressed another quick kiss to Lance’s forehead, then his nose, then his chin. He quickly brushed his tongue along Lance’s jawline, then pulled back again. Lance tried to capture Keith's lips again, but Keith avoided it easily as he kissed everywhere else. Lance hated seeing that stupid sly grin every time he teased him and waited for a reaction. Lance didn't say anything, in fact, he tried not to react at all, trying to show his distaste for this pointless teasing.

Keith finally let go of Lance’s arms and dropped down, kissing his lips deeply.

Lance expressed his pleasure with a deep hum and wrapped his arms around Keith tightly, feeling a rush of relief when he finally got what he wanted. It didn’t stay with just one kiss, melding into deeper kisses, faster kisses.

Keith finally pulled away to breathe and rolled off of the bed. He adjusted his hair and looked down at Lance with a smile.

Lance was surprised by the sudden lack of pressure on his body that Keith's gave and looked around dazed. He saw Keith looked at him slyly.

"Who said you could stop?" Lance demanded and also got out of the bed to grab Keith.

Keith stepped away from him. “I did,” he said. “I need to go get dressed. If you want to play more later...” he smiled.

Lance grabbed his wrist and yanked him back, then wrapped his arms tightly around him.

"You got me all riled up. Put your money where your mouth is and give me what you promised me. Besides, why get dressed when I’m just gonna take your clothes off anyways?" Lance said with a growl, smiling at Keith.

Keith frowned. “Put my money where my mouth is, huh?” His face slipped into a smile. “Fine.” He grabbed Lance around the waist and lifted him into his arms, moving toward the door.

Lance cried in surprise and then found himself being carried out of his room. At first, he resisted, but then he wrapped his arms around Keith and smiled at him. "There we go, now I feel like royalty,” he teased.

“Not for long,” Keith said as he headed toward his room. “I suppose I could treat you like a prince... a bound and gagged prince, but then you can’t have everything you want, can you?”

Lance paled a bit at he looked at Keith. "A-already?" he asked, a little nervous. He’d never gotten into anything that intense before. He was about to protest when he realized Keith's words excited him and he realized he was only wearing sweats. Lance blushed and tried to quickly use his hand to push down his already obvious boner.

“If you aren’t ready for it,” Keith said, “we can wait. Maybe it’d be better to wait until tonight anyways. Don’t need anyone walking in on you like that...”

Lance flushed even thinking about that; he'd probably die from embarrassment. But he wasn’t done. "Can't we just have a romantic moment together for an hour to two?" he mumbled, not wanting anyone to hear him other than Keith.

Keith kept carrying him to his bedroom. “Being together all night long wasn’t enough for you?” he asked.

Lance frowned. "You had a panic attack and then fell asleep. I mean, I liked it but it is not the same as. . . . .what happened yesterday.” Keith rolled his eyes and pushed into his room. He threw Lance onto the bed and moved to the closet, pulling the doors open.

Lance immediately sat up and watched him. “Keith?" he asked cautiously, nervous but intrigued about what he was going to do.

“I’m trying to decide which ones to use on you,” Keith said. “Toys and whatnot.”

Lance was sure his heart stopped. "How the hell do you know how to use this crap if you haven’t ever been in a romantic relationship before?”

Keith glanced over at him. “I’ve done some of this stuff before... experimentally... had nothing to do with romance,” he said slowly, sounding vague. He pulled a pair of handcuffs down. “Maybe these?”

Lance was more confused. "How do you even…” He stopped when he realized Keith had handcuffs in his hands. It reminded him of the time Keith's mind was zapped.

“Handcuffs…. uhm… maybe not that…” Lance said softly.

“Rope then?” Keith asked, his voice conversational as he replaced the cuffs.

“Keith, how can you talk about this like it is not a big deal?”

“All you have to say is ‘no’,” Keith told him. “I’m not gonna do anything you say you’re not okay with.”

Lance quieted, then muttered, "I never said I didn't want to do it." He didn't like that he was thoroughly embarrassed while Keith acted like it was no big deal.

Keith tossed something to Lance over his shoulder. “Then zip it!” he ordered.

Lance caught the object and looked at it. “Oh no,” he said. “No way. I’m not wearing this.” He turned the garment over, thinking it was just a bunch of leather straps, until he held it out and realized it was some kind of kinky elastic bodysuit.

"You said I could be in charge, so that is what I want.”

Lance examined the fabric in his hands. “No,” he said again. “I mean it, Keith. I’m _not_ wearing this.”

"Then get out of my room." Keith declared. "Put it on or leave."

Lance looked at the material. He was desperate for attention, and that desperation was stronger than his embarrassment. "Fine. You know what? Fine! I'll wear this stupid getup and I'll look sexy in it!" he said, trying to gather some of confidence while stripping off his shirt.

Keith smiled and went back to fishing around in the closet. “Good pup,” he said. He grabbed a few other restraints, including several different types of gags, and turned back to Lance.

Lance got his shirt off easily then paused at his pants. He never really got to this part in front of Keith before and he froze for a moment. He looked at Keith. “Uhm… can I use your bathroom…” he asked quietly.

Keith raised his eyebrows, an amused look on his face. “Sure,” he said, nodding toward the bathroom. He watched as Lance disappeared into it.

It took Lance almost ten minutes to figure out how to get the stupid thing on. He finally figured out where the legs and arms went and, more importantly, the sleeve where his junk was supposed to go. Lance wasn't sure if he liked the feeling of what he wore, until he looked in the mirror and he smiled.

Keith finished setting up some of the restraints on the bed when Lance came out of the bathroom. Keith glanced up and whistled. “Look at you,” he said.

Lance smiled confidently. Keith’s reaction made his heart jump. However, he was surprised Keith didn't get flustered. He wasn't joking when he said that he could be calm about something if he was expecting it. 

"I just needed a confidence boost. Now I'm good to go." He walked over to Keith and wrapped is arms around him, fumbling with Keith's shirt. "If I’m gonna do whatever you want, at least give me a good view,” he said, his voice dropping low.

Keith roughy grabbed Lance’s arms off of him and held him tightly. He forced him onto the bed and had his wrists secure in the restraints on the headboard in seconds.

Lance had half expected it, but he was shocked by how quickly Keith had restrained him. He smiled at him. "I have no clue what I'm doing Keith. Here's hoping that you can show me the ropes."

“That was the shittiest pun yet,” Keith said. He grabbed Lance’s legs and quickly started strapping him to a spreader bar. Once done with that, he grabbed the pile of gags off the floor and set them on Lance’s chest.

"I thought it was a perfect pun,” Lance managed, feeling more exposed now that his legs were forced open.

Keith straddled him and slowly picked up each gag. "Which one do you prefer?" he asked. He held up a muzzle, then a blue ball gag, and finally a bit gag.

"Wow, you are letting me pick? How thoughtful,” Lance teased, not sure what to do otherwise. "I'm afraid I'm a _bit_ lost.”

"Well okay, then," Keith said. "Though the ball gag is more comfortable." And he grabbed the bit and roughly forced it into Lance's mouth before the younger paladin could even protest. He worked at securing the buckle behind Lance's head.

Lance couldn't help but think this was pretty intense for his first time, but he couldn't deny that he had asked for it. He tried to say something snarky, but the bit in his mouth made it difficult to say anything.

Keith sat back and smiled. "Finally, got you to shut up," he said. Lance snarled around the gag, but nothing coherent came out. Keith stood up. "Peace and quiet," he sighed. "Sounds nice, doesn't it?" He looked over at Lance with a devilish grin. "Comfy?"

Lance thought about it for a moment. Could he move? No. Could he speak? No. Could he say he was uncomfortable? Not necessarily. After a moment of hesitation, he nodded.

"Cool," Keith said, throwing his jacket on. "Then I'll see you tonight." He opened the door.

Lance's eyes widened and he struggled harder. He started screaming, even though it was muffled and incoherent. His blood was boiling, thinking of Keith leaving him alone like this. Keith walked out of the room and closed the door, then stood outside for a second to see what Lance might do.

Lance struggled with the restrains and hard as he could but finally relaxed into the mattress. He was furious, wondering if this was really the right way to go. He started regretting exposing himself to Keith and wondered if he was better off just suffering in silence. His eyes filled with frustrated tears, but he bit down on the gag in his mouth, refusing to cry.


	21. Done

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith went a step too far, and Lance is furious. Rather than talk it out like adults, they do their normal thing and make matters worse. Keith decides the best thing he can do is run. Right into the Galra's waiting hands.

Keith walked away after a few moments and headed to breakfast. Throughout the day, when asked if he'd seen Lance, he shrugged and suggested someone check the pool or the gaming room, then walked away before he could blush. The thought of the blue paladin, bound and gagged on his bed made him harder than he thought possible.

The longer Keith took to come back, the more Lance decided it wasn't worth it. He felt abandoned and it hurt. After awhile he decided it wasn't even worth struggling. So he waited. He started to feel cold from the lack of real clothing and hungry from not eating breakfast yet.

The day went on. Keith spent time in the training room, collaborated a bit with Pidge and Hunk on some new tech and even played a game of cards with Shiro and Matt. Finally, when most everyone else started heading to bed, Keith returned to his room.

Lance was starving. With nothing else to do, he slept. When he woke up, he tried to escape again, but he reminded once more how well Keith had restrained him. There was no clock in the room, so Lance waited. Not being able to do anything for so long was driving him crazy.

Keith opened the door to his room and was immediately met with Lance snarling furiously against the gag in his mouth. Keith smiled at him and closed the door, locking it, then tugged his jacket off and hung it up. "Hey," he said casually. "How was your day?”

It pissed off Lance even more that Keith was acting like nothing had happened. He decided to use Keith’s tactic and ignored him. He looked away from him and didn't make a noise or move. 

Keith pulled his shirt up over his head, then headed over to the bed and climbed on top of Lance. He kissed his cheek. "Okay, you're obviously mad at me," he noted.

Lance continue to ignore him, not giving him any satisfaction at all. He didn't move a muscle when Keith kissed him.

Keith smiled. "And you're playing hard to get," he said. "That's fine. I'm sure I can fix that." He moved down on Lance's body until he reached the blue paladin's crotch. He gently started massaging it with his hand, while the other hand worked the cloth of the body suit away from it.

Lance did his absolute best not to react to anything. He couldn't help that his member started to harden, but he did his best not to squirm or to make any noise. He still didn't make any eye contact with Keith.

Keith freed Lance's dick from the body suit and started gently stroking it with his hand. When he finally got it hard enough to stand on its own, he bent over and took the head in his mouth. With that, he earned a satisfying gasp from his bound partner.

Trying to resist reacting to that broke Lance. Tears started to fall from his eyes as anger and pleasure mixed together. He hated that he felt like this and after a few moments he tried to knock Keith off of him, feeling violated.

Keith noticed Lance struggling and quickly pulled away. That was when he realized Lance was crying. He quickly scrambled forward and fumbled with the strap on Lance's gag.

The moment Lance was able to speak, all he said was, "I'm done. Get me out of here." He still refused to look at Keith, rage boiling within him. He didn't want to give Keith the satisfaction of seeing that.

Keith stared at him. "What?" he asked, surprised.

"I'm done." Lance said firmly, seething hatred polluting the tone of his voice.

Keith felt his heart drop into his stomach. "Lance-"

"ARE YOU DEAF? I'M DONE. GET ME OUT OF HERE!" Lance snarled.

Keith jumped. He hadn't expected Lance to yell at him. He fumbled with the restraints as quickly as he could, his hands shaking. "Lance-"

Once Lance was free, he shoved Keith away and walked to the bathroom. He quickly changed back into his clothes and went to the bathroom. Once he was dressed, he walked out of Keith's room without saying anything.

Keith stared as Lance left, standing in the center of his room, motionless for a long time. Then, slowly, almost dazedly, he walked to the lion hangar. He dropped to his knees in front of the red lion, it's barrier shining around it. "Red," he said, his voice quiet. "Let me in.” 

The red lion didn’t move at all. He growled but didn't pull down the barrier. In fact, it glowed brighter, showing that Red would not budge.

Keith stared at red for a long time. “Red. Please.” His voice broke. “I... I messed up. I need to leave…” Red growled again, but still didn't move.

Lance went straight to the dining room where he found Hunk. "Hunk, I need something to eat, astat,” he said sharply. He grabbed the first piece of food he could find and ate it furiously. Hunk didn't even, argue, knowing right now was not the time to talk. He was able to make something quick for Lance, who ate quickly. He chugged a ton of water, muttered his thanks to Hunk and left.

Keith pulled himself off of the floor and stormed away. “I’ll take a pod then, you stupid cat! Thanks for nothing!” He made his way to the pod bay but when he tried to open the doors to the pod, everything was locked. Keith tried everything to open the doors, but everything held still. He punched the wall so hard he felt a knuckle crack. Tears were freely flowing from his eyes now. He sank to the floor, clutching his hand.

Lance passed the bridge on his way to his room and heard crying. He recognized the voice, knowing it was Keith. He knew he should walk away as if nothing had happened, still pissed about it, but he glanced beyond the door, and in the distance saw Keith on the floor, shaking.

Keith sat that way for a long time, then finally dragged himself to his feet. He turned back to the pod and slammed his hand against the button as hard as he could. The doors opened. Lance watched him for awhile. He was still furious about Keith ditching him, but he wanted to comfort him. He held back until Keith opened the door to the pods. His blood spiked. "Oh no you don't. You are not running away,” he hissed running toward him.

Keith closed the pod doors and started it up. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, then started the pod forward, just as he heard someone knock loudly on the airlock doors. He turned just before the pod rocketed into space, and saw Lance. Then he was gone.

Lance hit the pod doors over and over again even though Keith was gone.

"You stupid, cowardly son of a bitch! You get so upset about being left alone, but you abandoned me! Hypocrite! Fine! Never come back! I never want to see your face again! I'll punch it to a bloody pulp if you do!" Lance screamed, even though he knew Keith couldn't hear him.

After an hour or so of screaming, Lance dragged himself to his feet, feeling numb. He finally dragged himself to his room. Once inside, he just laid in his bed, and didn't know if he wanted to cry or not. He stayed there, sulking, stirring in anger and trying not to feel hurt. He cried, but forced himself to stop, not wanting to show any weakness, even to himself, about what Keith had done to him. He was low, and even when Shiro had called for Voltron to assemble, Lance didn't answer the call. He didn't care anymore. He didn't want to care about anything anymore.

Keith flew as far and fast as he could until finally he got hungry enough that he needed to find somewhere to land and eat. He finally found a planet that seemed safe. He landed the pod. He stocked up on supplies and went back to his pod, once again taking off into darkness. He flew until he couldn’t keep his eyes open anymore, then simply drifted. He dreamt once again that Lance had crashed his ship into the barrier and gotten himself killed, but this time Keith couldn’t reach him. He screamed for him. He woke up in a panic, and realizing he was drifting through space in a pod, far away from home, scared him even more. He screamed until he remembered where he was, then curled up on the floor, shaking and gasping for air. He needed to calm down. He knew he did. Without Lance there to help him, he might hyperventilate and pass out.

Finally, Shiro knocked on Lance’s door. "Did you not hear the announcement Lance?” he called. “We need to move!"

Lance groaned. "Go without me. I'm not feeling well.”

"I'm sorry you’re not feeling well, but we need you. We need you to form Voltron. Get ready,” Shiro replied.

"I don't think it will work.”

Shiro tried to open the door. "Is something wrong?" he asked, a little concerned.

"I'm just not feeling well,” Lance replied again, a little firmer. 

"Has anyone seen Keith?" Pidge suddenly asked.

Lance physically twitched hearing Keith's name. He didn't say anything.

"I haven't seen him since lunch,” Shiro said. "But that's besides the point. Lance, we need to go. Now.”

"I'm of no help right now. Just go by yourselves. I'll be dead weight anyways,” Lance replied again

Keith gasped for air as he curled tighter in on himself. This was the first panic attack he had without Lance there to help him, and frankly he didn't know how to take care of it himself. Finally, he thought maybe pain would help, and bit into his fist until he tasted blood. The pain did help clear his head a little. He finally managed to steady his breathing, but as he sat in the pilots chair, he started to shake even worse. He bit his tongue and decided he needed to get out of this ship. He started flying, thinking maybe he could find somewhere to land and start a new life. Or maybe he'd find somewhere he could land and die. He flew for hours, constantly wiping tears out of his eyes. He seemed to be in open space with no habitable planets anywhere. Then, just when he considered stopping for awhile, a galra ship loomed up out of the darkness. Keith did nothing to stop them as the galra took his ship in. Perhaps this was the universes way of telling him he didn’t belong out there. He deserved to be captured and tortured and killed. He opened the pod doors and stepped out, hands over his head in surrender.


	22. Son of a Bitch, Got Me Wrapped Around Your Finger

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith is gone, probably for good. Voltron is needed, but Lance doesn't think he can do it. And then, SURPRISE, things get worse. Because of COURSE they do.

After arguing with Shiro, and Pidge realizing that Keith had taken a pod and left, Lance found himself in Red. He didn't want to fight. He didn't want to help people. He wanted to be angry and in the Red Lion, that could be dangerous, but Shiro wouldn't have it, unless he heard that whole story, which Lance refused to tell. Pidge seemed really concerned about the whole thing. When they started to fly, she privately commed Lance.

"Hey, what happened?" she asked.

"I don't want to talk about it." Lance muttered.

"It's about Keith leaving, right?”

“It’s a long story. Keith abandoned me and instead of apologizing, he ran away like a fucking coward. Like he doesn’t care about me at all,” Lance said. I hope he never comes back."

Pidge was quiet for a moment. “Geez. That's pretty bad that you’re thinking like that,” she finally said.

"Tell me about it,” Lance said darkly. 

“Listen,” Pidge said. “I don't know what happened but… I think we should give Keith the benefit of the doubt. For now, let's kick some enemy butt. We can figure things out with Keith when he comes home. Maybe you'll feel a little better after that."

"Doubt it, but thanks for looking out for me, Pidge.” 

There was no time for talking after that. Lance fought ruthlessly. He wanted to go back to the castle as fast as he could, but he was worried about Keith. He hated admitting it, even to himself, but he couldn't help but think that that idiot would get himself captured or even killed. The worst part was that he actually cared even though he really didn't want to.

The team somehow managed to form Voltron, even with Lance’s horrible mood. As the galra ship attacked them with their laser weapons, they were able to deflect one of them to hit the ship itself. Finally, Voltron finished defending the freedom fighters and their base. The hit from the laser beam hit the main control room of the ship and it quickly chain reacted explosions on the ship. Lance sighed. "Can we go home now?" He complained. 

After making sure the freedom fighters were alright, they all headed back to the castle base. Lance threw his helmet onto the pilot's chair and immediately started to walk to his room. Pidge managed to catch up with him. "Lance! Wait!" she called, but Lance just kept walking. She finally managed to get in front of him. "Seriously Lance, what is going on? I've never seeing you so angry before.”

"Leave me alone,” Lance said with no emotion. 

Pidge kept trying to badger him, and Allura started to approach them, wondering what was going on. Coran met the team in the hall, his face white.

"Wonderful job defending that freedom fighter base, guys,” He said. “We have another problem. One of our pods took off before you left and is now in the hands of the Galra. I found footage of Keith getting into one of those pods, and he hasn't come back yet."

Lance groaned. "Are you serious?! Can Keith go one day without trying to kill himself?”

Coran kept going. "I managed to get coordinates of the last location the pod was before it went AWOL.”

Lance clenched his fists so hard that his nails cut into his skin. Part of him thought that Keith deserved it, considering the way he had acted, but he couldn't help but think that Keith needed to be saved. He groaned loudly. "Okay, Keith's an idiot and needs to be saved. What should we do?" he asked.

”Everyone, grab something to eat and get back in your Lions, “Shiro ordered. “We need Keith, he’s holding sensitive information. We can't let the Galra extract that.”

Lance hated how quickly he grabbed something to eat and got into Red again. He really didn't want to care, glad that Keith had to suffer the karma that he had coming to him. Yet here he was, already racing out into space, before anyone else was ready, and punching in the coordinates that Coran had given them. 

"You son of a bitch, have me wrapped around your finger,” he muttered. Red went flying.


	23. All Too Familiar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The rest of team Voltron has discovered that Keith has disappeared. Coran knows that Keith took a pod and left, but now that pod is in the hands of the galra, along with our favorite Red. 
> 
> Keith is face to face with Haggar once again, and this time he's sure he won't make it out alive.

It took the galra about five seconds to bind Keith’s arms tightly behind his back. They started marching him down the hall to a cell and shoved him in, not bothering to remove his restraints. He couldn’t help but think it was poetic justice. He sat alone in his cell for hours. It was much lonelier here without Lance. He laid down, shifting to be as comfortable as he could with his hands tied, then closed his eyes.

He slept fitfully for a long time before he finally rolled over and glared at the door.

“If you’re gonna kill me, just do it!” He yelled, his voice pathetically weak. He was met with no response. He moved until his back was up against the wall and stared at the door.

He finally dozed off again. There wasn’t much more for him to do in the cell. Finally, the door opening startled him awake, and he was roughly pulled to his feet. He stumbled along behind the galra soldiers, not even bothering to ask where they were going. He’d done this before and he knew what asking questions would get him.

He was lead into a smaller room. His wrists were released, then resecured to a standing metal table. Keith pulled on the restraints experimentally, but they didn’t budge. The soldier saw him struggling and hit him across the head with his gun.

Keith glared up at the soldier from behind his hair as blood slowly started oozing from the cut on his forehead, thanks to the soldiers gun. “If you’re going to kill me, get it over with!” he snarled.

The soldier hefted his gun and glared at Keith. “We’re not going to kill you yet,” he said. “Haggar wants to see you, and her ship will be here shortly.”

Keith spat at him and the soldier stepped back, disgusted. Then, he grabbed a piece of cloth and tied it around Keith’s head, shoving part of it in his mouth. Keith growled and glared but there was nothing he could do.

Keith sat and glared at the soldier for a long time, until finally the door opened and Zarkon’s witch stepped through it. Keith’s heart stuttered a little, but he managed not to let fear show on his face. Haggar stepped up to him and dragged a nail down his cheek.

“I remember you,” she rasped.

Keith glared at Haggar as her nail dug into his skin, digging into it and sending sharp pain through it. She cut through the cloth around his mouth and he spat it out but said nothing. Haggar stooped in front of him and held her hand out. Keith gritted his teeth. He knew what was coming next. “I am going to ask you some questions,” she said, with a wicked smile. “I will know if you are lying.”

—————————————————————————————————————- Shiro tried to tell Lance that they needed to stick together, but Lance just snapped at them to hurry up. HE got to the coordinates Coran had given them, but there was no ship. After awhile, once the others had caught up, Pidge detected a very fresh trail of fuel residue and they were able to follow that. After an hour, they found the Galra ship that they assumed Keith was on. 

"What's the plan?" Lance asked.

Shiro decided a infiltration tactic was the best option. All of the Lions still had the invisible cloaking feature and they all went in. Pidge was able to hack the system to let a few lions in. Lance insisted that he be one of the people. No one really argued with him. Soon, Pidge, Allura and Lance were on the ship, with Hunk and Shiro on standby.

Lance and Allura were able to stand watch as Pidge worked on a door for the control room. They had knocked the guardes by the door out, and Lance wondered if they should hide the bodies. Finally Pidge got the door open, and Lance shot the Galra soldiers before they could send for help. They got the bodies into the room and locked the door as they searched for Keith on the monitors.——————————————————————————————————————— Keith screamed. He'd tried so hard not to but the pain got too intense and he screamed so loudly he tasted blood in his throat. He arched his back, straining against the restraints around his wrists. "Where are they?" Haggar yelled in his face.

"I don't know!" he screamed. Pain made his mind go white for a moment. He relaxed for a moment as the pain stopped, breathing hard. Haggar had cut him all across his face, and across his neck. Blood welled up around his wrists as the restraints cut into them. Keith coughed up another mouthful of blood, knowing that he was bleeding somewhere inside of him, profusely.

Haggar dropped her hand and stared at Keith for a second, then slashed across his face, cutting his cheek open with her nails. "You may be strong," she growled, "but I will get it out of you." She turned to the guards. "Gag him and leave him here. I'll be back in an hour.”

The soldier wrapped the cloth around Keith's mouth again and walked out of the room, leaving him alone. He couldn't think and could hardly see, blood dripping into his eyes and turning his vision red. He couldn't even move. He was dying and he knew it.

——————————————————————————————————————— Lance scanned all of the monitors quickly, until he saw a horrifying, yet familiar, scene. Keith was bound to a vertical table and it looked like he was badly injured. Lance felt a fear gripping his chest, turning his stomach to ice, but he tried to keep his breath steady.

"Pidge, I found him,” he said. “There, on the second to the right screen on the 3rd row. Is there a way to disable the restraints and unlock the door? I can do the rest." 

"It'll take me a few minutes at least, but I think I can figure this out,” Pidge replied seriously.

“Lance, I’m going to come with you,” Allura said. 

“No. Stay with Pidge. We're done for if Pidge gets attacked while she does her thing,” Lance said sternly. "Where is that room, Pidge?”

"I'll send the coordinates so you can find it easily. Otherwise, it is down four floors." Lance ran out the room and tried to keep his sneaking around as low of a profile as possible.

——————————————————————————————————————— Keith sat in the room by himself for a long time before the door opened again. He didn’t look up, but listened as Haggar took her place on the floor again. “Are you ready to speak yet, Paladin of Voltron?”

———————————————————————————————————————

Pidge kept checking the room Keith was in, and felt her blood run cold when Haggar appeared. "Lance," Pidge said over comms, "you have company. Zarcon's witch is there with him.”

Lance's worst fears were coming true. "Copy that,” he managed, moving faster. 

——————————————————————————————————————- Keith made no move to respond to the witch’s question, and then he felt her grab his leg, pulling it free of the restraints. “You leave me no choice, Paladin,” she said. She started putting pressure on Keith’s leg. Keith started to squirm as it became painful but she only pushed harder. Suddenly, Keith heard a snap and the pain disappeared for a moment, then suddenly returned, so intense that he screamed until his voice was gone. Haggar let go of Keith’s broken leg and stepped back. “Let’s try this again,” she said. “Or do you want me to break the other one?”

———————————————————————————————————————

Lance was moving down a hall as quickly as he could when he heard a scream. His blood ran cold. “I recognize that voice,” he whispered to himself. He moved until he was sure he’d found the right room.

‘Pidge, I found him. Are the doors open?" Lance asked desperately.

"I'm in. Just tell me when,” Pidge said.

“ _Now_ ,” Lance said. “I'm going in now." He threw the door open.

Keith was long gone, so beyond out of it he didn’t even register that Lance was there, and with blood in his eyes, he couldn’t see. All he could do was process pain and think about how he deserved this. He wanted to pass out, but his mind simply wouldn’t flee from consciousness.

Lance took one look at him, his clearly broken leg and the blood that covered his forehead, eyes, chin and shirt. He felt a stinging rage as he locked eyes with Haggar.

"How dare you?” he hissed, lunging toward the witch. She blocked him, sending him stumbling backward. Lance regained his footing, glancing at Keith, which set his insides on fire again, both with fear and anger. He snarled and charged the witch again. She caught his gun, yanking it upward as he moved to aim, then twisted his wrist savagely, making him yell. The gun flew from his grasp. 

The witch grabbed Lance around the neck, lifting him onto his tiptoes, one hand outstretched toward Keith. "I remember you too,” she hissed. Lance grabbed at her hand, but she was strong. He made a strangled noise as Keith twitched, wailing in agony, the witch’s hand glowing a faint purple.

Then, suddenly, the witch gasped and stumbled. Lance dropped to his knees, coughing violently. His vision tilted dangerously, but after a few breaths, he refocused. Allura was fighting with the witch, her whip wrapped around Haggar’s wrist. Haggar pulled away, ripping Allura’s bayard out of her hand, sending it sliding across the floor. She took a moment to collect herself and turned to face Allura. “Altean Princess,” she growled. “Here for your precious pet?” She gestured to Keith. “He is ours now. If he is not already dead, he will be soon.” Her fingers glowed and Keith writhed, trying to scream, but his voice was gone. Lance pulled himself to his feet, growling, furious.

Allura immediately lunged at Haggar, swinging at her with her fists. Her movements were quick, her blows concise. With the witch distracted, Keith fell limp into his bindings, and Lance saw him panting. 

Lance stumbled over to Keith as he spoke to Pidge over comms. "Get Keith's restraints off!”

Keith finally fled from consciousness and everything around him went black, just as he felt arms around him. Pain faded away to blissful nothing. The restraints released and Keith fell into Lance's arms. 

Upon seeing Keith in Lance’s arms, and knowing that she wasn’t going to be able to fight the witch off much longer, Allura swiped her bayard off the floor, grabbing Lance’s as well. She struck the witch hard across the head, once with her own bayard, once with the red bayard. Then she turned and ran, Lance close behind her.

Lance made it back to his lion, carrying Keith inside. Red took off while Lance gently laid Keith on the floor. He could only think that this was too familiar.


	24. For All The Times I Never Said I Didn't Love You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Team Voltron rescued Keith from the galra ship and, more importantly, Haggar. But... there's a small problem...
> 
>  
> 
> Okay... It's a pretty big problem...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is where the story starts to take an interesting and dark turn, my children. 
> 
> Just a warning.
> 
> In some of the coming chapters, there's gonna be some pretty dirty stuff //wiggles eyebrows//, but there's also going to be some non-con, abuse and torture. Just... be prepared. This will come... eventually. Not necessarily right off the bat.

The others managed to get into their Lions and held off the inevitable attack. Many of the Galra ships followed after them, but the lions easily evaded and neutralized them. Soon, they were scot free.

Lance checked to make sure that Keith was still breathing. His leg was bent unnaturally and Lance didn't dare touch it until they got back to the castle. He was frustrated with himself for reminding himself multiple times that he was still angry at Keith. Finally, he couldn’t stand it anymore. He knelt next to Keith and gently pushed his blood soaked hair out of his face. There were twelve long cuts down his face which Lance could only imagine came from Haggar’s nails. Blood was thick on his forehead from a cut across the top of his head, and his mouth was dripping blood. Lance felt tears dripping off of his nose as he took in the gag still around Keith’s mouth. He didn’t dare touch it.

"You idiot…” he muttered, holding Keith closely.

Finally, Red's autopilot get them back to the castle. Lance knew Keith needed to go to the infirmary, so he carefully picked him up and exited his lion. 

“Allura, Keith needs medical attention,” he cried as he moved to the infirmary, as quickly as he dared.

Almost as soon as they reached the infirmary, Keith woke up. He was delirious with pain vomited blood all over the floor. He didn’t flee from consciousness again and his entire world was pain. This happened just as Lance set Keith on the infirmary bed. Lance panicked and shoved Keith onto the bed, lying on his back. Keith was trying to breathe, but he couldn’t move and blood caught behind the gag still in his mouth. It didn’t take more than five seconds for him to start choking on it. Lance noticed Keith convulsing, but, after Keith stopped moving, it took Lance several seconds to realize that he wasn’t breathing.

He tried to get the gag out of Keith's mouth; it was tied tightly and clumsily. Lance's hands also shaking as he tried to untie it. Finally, he grabbed Keith's blade and tried to cut through the material.

“Shit!” Lance shouted. “He’s not breathing!"

He panicked, reaching forward and forced Keith’s mouth open, turning his head to the side, no longer bothering with being gentle. He used his fingers to try and remove as much of the blood in Keith’s mouth as he could. Then he pressed his mouth to Keith’s, trying to ignore the taste of blood, and forced air into Keith’s lungs.

"Lance, move,” Allura ordered. “I'll do a body scan and get his lungs working again!”

Lance barely heard her. He gave two more breaths, just in case, then pulled away as the machinery did the scan and started to work on him.

He stood anxiously as Allura worked, watching Keith’s unmoving chest feverishly. “Allura...” he said, his voice anxious.

“I’m working on it!” She snapped.

Then, Shiro walked into the room.

"How is he?” he asked, trying to be calm. Despite his efforts, his voice shook. It was one of the very rare times Lance saw Shiro anxious.

"He's not breathing. He coughed up some blood and stopped breathing!" Lance said, his voice panic stricken.

"I'm almost there, please stay patient you two!" Allura said, also on edge.

Lance angrily pushed tears off of his face and glared at Keith’s lifeless form. “Stupid bastard!” he sobbed. “He just _had_ to go and get himself hurt!”

For a long moment, everything was silent. Allura finished her work and they all watched as Keith remained lifeless. “Come on, Keith,” Lance growled. “ _Come on_! Keith!”

Keith stayed still, and Lance moved back to him and started to push on his lungs the old fashioned way."First you ditch me, then you run away,” Lance managed through frustrated, terrified tears. “I'll never forgive you if you die on me too.” He went back to Keith's mouth and forced breath into his lungs again as Pidge and Hunk walked into the room. 

“Is he okay?” Pidge asked. “What’s going on?”

No one answered her. The tension in the room was thick and almost painful.

Keith was unresponsive.

Finally, Lance felt absolutely helpless, and he bent over Keith, kissing him deeply instead of pushing air into his lungs. “Come on,” he murmured. Then he started up again. “Come on, Keith!” he snarled.

Keith didn't move. Lance was shaking as he started to cry with Keith's forehead on his. "I don't care what happened anymore,” he whispered. “I just want you to be alive.”

Shiro finally stepped forward and gently pulled Lance away from Keith, wrapping his arms across his chest. “I think it’s time to be done,” he said, forcing the words out in a choked voice. Lance struggled but Shiro kept his grip on him tightt. “He’s dead, Lance!” he said. “He’s not coming back!”


End file.
